A decision on whether a court hearing regarding a request by Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil is to be held in open court will be taken next week.
The ruling was given by Mr Justice Antonio Mizzi after he heard submissions from both parties, with Busuttil's lawyers arguing for an open court sitting while the lawyers of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and another six involved in the case arguing that they need another week to present their arguments on this case.
Today's sitting was once again held behind closed doors in the presence of, among others, Muscat and Busuttil.
The case involves Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, his chief of staff Keith Schembri and Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi, as well as four other individuals accused by Opposition leader Simon Busuttil of money laundering activities as revealed by the Panama Papers.
The decision will now be taken after Busuttil relinquishes his post as Nationalist Party and Opposition Leader. The election for new PN leader will be held on Saturday.
"I can assure you, I will keep on fighting for justice to prevail. It is very clear that the other party in this case wants to prolong the process", Busuttil told journalists gathered outside court.
SImon Busuttil Comment from The Malta Independent on Vimeo.
Mr Justice Mizzi has been asked to not take on the case by Busuttil on account of a possible conflict of interest, as his wife, Marlene Mizzi is a Labour Party Member of the European Parliament.
Muscat and Busuttil are both in the courtroom, together with Mizzi and Schembri.
In the last sitting, Mr Justice Mizzi had ordered the parties involved in the case to attend today's sitting.
The other four involved in the case are: Brian Tonna, Karl Cini, Malcolm Scerri and Adrian Hillman.
Jason Azzopardi represented Busuttil, lawyers Edward Gatt, Mark Vassallo, Pawlu Lia, Stephen Tonna Lowell, Ian Refalo, James D' Agostino and Aaron Mifsud Bonnici represented the other parties.
PN statement
In a statement, the Nationalist Party said that Joseph Muscat wants to prolong the issue as much as possible. He is resisting all requests for an investigation to be carried out, the PN said.
Instead of accepting that the sitting is held in open court, the prime minister said he needs another week for his lawyers to prepare the argument, the PN said.
PL statement
In reply, the Labour Party said it is Busuttil who is trying to prolong the process by attempting to choose the judge who suits his purposes best.
If he had not submitted a request for the judge to recuse himself, the case would already have started to be heard.
The caretaker leader is persisting in the same tactics he used before the election, where he interpreted legal situations to his benefit. It would be better for Busuttil to say whether he will resign as an MP when his campaign against the Prime Minister and his family is proven to be a lie, the PL said.