Before the 2013 election, the leaders of the main parties were asked a simple question. In politics should you always tell the truth? Lawrence Gonzi without hesitation replied: “Absolutely, in politics you should always tell the truth.” Joseph Muscat dithered “mmm... well, at some stage you have to tell the truth”. This statement revealed Muscat’s true nature.
When they lost the European Union referendum, Muscat and Alfred Sant called their supporters onto the streets – “partnership” had won Muscat claimed. Nobody could understand his position. Yet thousands of their supporters converged in front of Super One while thousands more from the Yes camp were already celebrating in the streets. Muscat knew the truth – he lost. That didn’t stop Muscat peddling the lie with complete disregard for the truth and an even more worrying disregard for the lives of the citizens from opposite camps on the streets.
A campaign video showed Muscat meeting a working class couple who benefitted from government funds to buy their property. Except they weren’t. The family owned a furniture company that was part of a consortium that had been awarded a €22.5 million contract to build the Kappara flyover.
When Muscat claimed his wife swam 14 kilometres in rough open sea in almost world-record time nobody bothered to contradict – many knew it was a lie.
When Muscat claimed he had not known about Keith Schembri’s and Konrad Mizzi’s secret offshore companies, or when he claimed he did not know where Neville Gafà worked, he knew he was lying and most did too. When he claimed that Delimara power station was causing cancer he knew he was lying. Medical experts told him he was wrong, but he persisted, disregarding the anxiety he was causing. When he stated he did not know who owned 17Black he was clearly lying.
More sinister was his use of intimidation. He threatened Peppi Azzopardi that should he attack the Labour Party, “I will strike you twice, with all my strength, under the belt”. These were not empty threats.
He recruited several henchmen to Castille. Glenn Bedingfield, his long-time friend, regularly and viciously targeted journalists and critics of Muscat in his blog during working hours paid by the state. Josef Caruana, the vitriolic former editor of l-Orizzont was recruited soon after writing a widely condemned inflammatory editorial. The whole of One media conducted his dirty work of hounding those who dared to oppose him resorting to outright lies. The demonisation of Nationalist MEPs who exposed his villainy was professionally choreographed.
Where he felt intimidation would not work he used bribery. The incriminating accusations about the deals Muscat reached with big business in the notorious fourth floor evaporated when Anġlu Farrugia was offered the Speaker’s seat and later his daughter’s appointment to the bench. This was the same Farrugia who had previously tormented Daphne Caruana Galizia and who found the Azerbaijani elections free and fair.
Muscat’s sharpest critic Lou Bondì, who had asked Muscat about the truth in 2013, disappeared when he got his iced bun and never bothered with the truth again.
If this were a functioning state Muscat would have been interrogated long ago
Muscat hijacked the institutions to silence those who dared utter the truth. The prosecution of the whistle blower who exposed the corruption of Evarist Bartolo’s chief canvasser by the police was a chilling reminder how Muscat would go to any length. Journalists were brought before the court at 10pm for no good reason. The AG dropped the Australia Hall case to benefit his party.
Journalists critical of him were simply excluded from media events and overseas visits. FIAU reports were hidden away.
Disgraced Commissioner John Dalli returned to Malta after Muscat appointed him advisor. Dalli had escaped interrogation by producing certificates claiming he could not travel. John Rizzo was turfed out as police commissioner and Dalli’s investigation into bribery and corruption came to an abrupt end. Convicted Cyrus Engerer was proclaimed a soldier of steel and then made Muscat’s Sherpa in Brussels.
Muscat appointed Adrian Hillman on the American University of Malta board despite his secret corrupt deals with his best mate Schembri. Brian Tonna’s Nexia BT was put on the selection board for Vitals and Electrogas contracts despite having set up secret companies for Mizzi, Schembri, Hillman, Cheng Chen and others.
While Muscat was protecting his own he used the justice system to target critics.
The multiple libel suits brought by Muscat, Chris Cardona, Schembri and Mizzi all served the same purpose – to intimidate those who knew too much.
For enemy of the state Daphne Caruana Galizia, this was not enough. In 1998 Muscat had already started to hound her with his lies. In his book Roberto Memmo: L-Iskandlu ta’ Chambray Muscat gave the impression that Caruana Galizia formed part of the Mafia. He later had to admit in court that he lied to pay her back for her critical stance towards his Party. He conspired with Owen Bonnici, Schembri and Christian Kalin of Henley and Partners to hit Caruana Galizia with SLAPP lawsuits in the UK using his personal e-mail.
Muscat repeatedly voted against amendments proposed by the opposition to protect journalists against such lawsuits.
Cardona, who Muscat made his deputy, froze Caruana Galizia’s bank accounts. The crowd-funding in support of Caruana Galizia should have alerted Muscat that seething under the surface was a bubbling anger towards him and a hidden admiration for the woman who would not be silenced. It is however Muscat’s disregard for human life that has brought us to where we are.
He reached a dodgy deal to sell half the health service to an unknown company fronted by a notorious conman Ram Tumuluri. The company had never run a clinic let alone a hospital.
Despite all the warnings Muscat relinquished control of the hospitals disregarding the risks to the lives of patients.
His implementation of a pushback strategy for irregular migrants would have led to countless deaths had the NGOs not intervened. For years on end he participated in, condoned and encouraged the dehumanisation and vilification of Caruana Galizia.
His right-hand man had been colluding with murderers for months and had arranged for the state to fund the middleman while exposing sensitive information to the murderers.
Even after her murder the dehumanisation continued – the daily clearing of her memorial, the harassment of the family, the obstruction of justice, the protection of those who leaked secrets to criminals, the interference of the prime minister.
The President of the republic is right. A gang has captured the state. The leader is none other than Joseph Muscat. When the plan to attack Caruana Galizia was hatched, Muscat wrote on his personal e-mail “I don’t object”. He oversaw years of deception, secrecy, intimidation and finally murder.
He is not fit to be prime minister. Neither is he fit to be a member of parliament. Nor a member of a party. If this were a functioning state he would have been interrogated long ago, his office and home raided, his computers seized and his assets frozen.
If the Labour Party had an ounce of dignity it would expel him from the party and withdraw the whip. Instead we have a travelling circus of honour organised by the party for a disgraced and morally bankrupt leader who has wrecked the party, contaminated his successor and ruined the country.
Kevin Cassar is professor of surgery, University of Malta.