Subterfuge, deceit, bluff are all part of the same game.  That is a game meant to mislead and mis-direct whilst avoiding responsibility and the truth.  It takes practice and also a web to pursue the course and maintain that façade of innocence and bluff.

The greater part in the higher echelons of this labour government have become pros in the art of subterfuge.  They do it knowing that it is approved and encouraged, having seen the Prime Minister himself on several occasions resort to the mastery of the art.  The case of the Panama Papers and Egrantis but one of several but is itself the core of the subterfuge, having started almost as soon as the oaths were taken.

We can recall the Gaffarena case, the extravagant travels of the PM and his wife in Dubai, the Adrian Hillman connection at the newspaper he worked for, the Pilatus Bank piece of theatre, the viral positions of trust, the appropriation of institutions and agencies, the fuel agreement with Azerbaijan, the Vitals Health Care contracts, the 17 Black contract, the medical visas scandal, the lacking investigation of the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder, the Acapulco jaunt, the prisoners sewing for a contracted job, people dying whilst in the care of the mental hospital, the early election of 2017, trees ripped out of the ground, the St. George’s Bay projects, the Airmalta results, the response to the EU delegations on the rule of law and into Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri, the swath of direct orders and so many more.  They all have a common theme: that of wanting to hide something and hide it in a way that it cannot be revealed to lead back to its owners. 

That is where Daphne so irritated and frustrated the web that had been created and crafted to deceive and bluff the public on really serious cases, today some of them to be heard before the courts.  Her investigative journalism and trusted sources of information were too much for them.

Time will tell if the subterfuge will manage to stand scrutiny and awareness.  Many people, although unwilling to be categorically open against the Konrad Mizzi s’ and the Keith Schembri s’ are well aware of the shadow cast over all things Labour. But nobody likes being taken for a fool either and if these charades continue at the rate they have been, finally, people will raise their arms and say “enough!”.  The inner circle may be well stitched up but others may open their minds a bit more and call it by its name.

It is sickening to read and take in the extent of the ploys and the set-ups and the method of the clan.  One gets the feeling too, that they themselves are starting to see the writing on the wall and that their time of shrugging shoulders, turning the head in side-glances and claiming innocence are over.  A new direction is needed, even if that in itself is a counter-subterfuge.

After all, Maltese people are industrious and do seek to improve their economic prospects but in the majority they do it by honest means, investment and hard work.  To then take stock of the Declaration of Assets of various Ministers, MPs from both sides and the Prime Minister himself, something does get hold of you and knock you to your senses. 

But perhaps the prize for subterfuge goes not to the well- known charmers who consider themselves above the law, but to the Commissioner of Police himself whose conduct does not fit the position he holds, in his capacity as law enforcer and investigator of crimes and criminal behavior.

The public also have a right to know about crimes which are being investigated.  Whenever a crime has a negative light on it, such as a possible hate crime or racist attack, or even when it involves someone who is a prominent business, professional or political person, whether as victim or suspect, there is a blanket of silence.  There are victims here who deserve their case to be thoroughly investigated and every effort made to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice. 

But I suppose the Daphne Caruana Galizia case is the template that is followed and the new manual of the Commissioner.

The Speaker of the House too, should ensure that at least in the house of Parliament there is democracy, debate and accountability.  How can he tolerate the absence of contracts ofnational importance, from being tabled to the house before being signed?  Not to mention the double standards and misogyny, the poor dress code, the vulgar and shameful language and the general contempt by some of its members towards the very institution that should be defining our democracy and our international reputation.

Those who have forsaken their values for that extra pile of cash, are today faced by a new generation of children and grand-children, neighbours, a more conscious society – in spite of the subterfuge, tangible effects on our health due to our poor air and the noise pollution and general decline of our environment and they can no longer remain neutral about the responsibility of holding such deceitful persons and institutions to account. Otherwise we come near to becoming a lawless society.

We may not always do it in a dramatic or extrovert manner but we are patient people and we know, as our people knew way back when St Paul survived the bite of the snake that justice catches up with us all  –

“As Paul gathered an armful of sticks and was laying them on the fire, a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, bit him on the hand. ⁴ The people of the island saw it hanging from his hand and said to each other, “A murderer, no doubt! Though he escaped the sea, justice will not permit him to live.” ⁵

Fortunately for Paul, he was not a murderer and he survived and was hailed as a God.

There are those, though, who may not be on a mission from Christ, even though they feel like Gods.  Could we be on the verge of new era for Malta or are we not quite sick of it all yet?  Each person must answer for him/herself.