The Civil Society Network has asked Finance Minister Edward Scicluna whether he was involved, directly or indirectly, in the sacking of two former key FIAU officials.

"In 2016 our country went through the major embarrassment of seeing the resignations of both Police Commissioner Michael Cassar and FIAU Director Manfred Galdes in three-month period. All of this did not occurr in a vacuum, but in view of an FIAU report pointing towards individuals in the higher stratas of Maltese political power," the Civil Society Network said.

"A few days after the general election of 2017 the FIAU terminated the employoment of two of its main officials - Jonathan Ferris and Charles Cronin. These persons lead the financial analysis section and the compliance sections of the FIAU respectively. The Civil Society Network notes that the sacking of these officials from the FIAU happened at the same time as when Finance Minister Edward Scicluna had publicly asked if the FIAU reports had been written with the intention of being leaked."

"The Civil Society Network is asking Minister Edward Scicluna to inform the Maltese people whether he had any form of involvement, even if indirect, in the decision to sack FIAU officials Jonathan Ferris and Charles Cronin after the results of the last general election had been announced?"

"The Civil Society Network insists that the Maltese people have the right to know that their institutions truly operate in the interest of the common good." They also argue that the people have a right to know everything necessary to establish the truth with regard to the resignations of Commissioner Michael Cassar and Manfred Galdes, as well as the sacking of Jonathan Ferris and Charles Cronin.

"In CSN's view, the lack of willingness to establish the truth about such vital matters can only be referred to as: institutional omerta." 

"Under these circumstances, the Civil Society Network agrees with the statement by the Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri in October of this year during his speech at the opening of the forensic year, particularly with the following extract: "The Rule of Law requires that there is a punishment for anyone breaking the law. If there is punishment for some but not for others then the law courts will no longer be administrators of justice but would become administrators of  injustice by penalising some and not others. Instead of the rule of law we would have the rule of criminals".