Once again, this country has been witness to the power and privilege of Parliament used against persons who do not sit in the House and who cannot answer back with all the rights enjoyed by any citizen – since what is said in the House is covered by parliamentary privilege.
We have many times raised our voice to say this privilege should be removed, but it is still there and it is still being used, or abused.
Earlier this week, Labour MP Evarist Bartolo, one of the former ministers in the House, launched a tirade directed at the head of the Malta Financial Services Authority, Professor Joe Bannister, accusing him of being involved in possible conflicts of interest.
Mr Bartolo has often had MFSA in his sights, especially over its treatment of investors angry at the way they were treated with regards to investments made in the Bank of Valletta Property Fund.
Coincidentally, Maltastar, which Mr Bartolo edits, this week came out with allegations regarding the appointment of Tonio Depasquale as Chief Executive Officer at BOV.
The two issues could, of course, be just coincidentally in the public domain at the same time.
Professor Bannister has now insisted that his role within international companies was always public knowledge and denied claims that he awarded contracts to foreign business partners. He rejected the allegation of conflict of interest made by Mr Bartolo in Parliament.
On Wednesday, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said that Prof. Bannister, whom he had spoken to, denied the allegations of conflict of interest and would be writing to the Prime Minister about his position. Mr Fenech said whether an investigation will be carried out depended on the contents of the letter.
In a letter sent to The Times, Mr Bartolo provided more details about his claims made in Parliament and challenged Prof. Bannister to deny them.
There the matter stands, for now. An allegation has been made and it may be investigated depending on Mr Bannister’s letter to the prime minister.
We acknowledge the importance of the press and of Parliament in itself as a watchdog over all areas of public concern, as long as the allegations can be replied to and the truth sussed out. As long, we also add, as allegations are not made in fora like the House where the person mentioned cannot reply.
Apart from the justice or injustice of it all, to be attacked in Parliament where one cannot get redress, there is also another far more important aspect to consider: the impact of such allegations on the financial services sector which, in today’s world, lives on reports and credibility or lack of.
To speak in very general terms, we are seeing how the case regarding John Dalli, whether he was guilty or not, has had an incredible impact on the credibility of all Maltese in the EU. It is only thus that we can describe the minute, one could also say, hostile and overbearing interrogation suffered by Tonio Borg in the European Parliament on Wednesday.
Our financial services sector is very precious to our economy and fortunately it is based on approval by the two sides of the House. Allegations such as were made quickly go round the world and cast a shadow over not just MFSA but also the entire sector. We simply cannot afford that.
One asks whether the Labour Party knew that Mr Bartolo was going to raise such issues and whether it approves of his way of doing. We also note that financial services does not form part of Mr Bartolo’s remit on the Shadow Cabinet. Even so, we repeat, this does not mean that the sector as a whole and MFSA and its top levels in particular are untouchable. And we agree that the Property Fund issue has been dragging its feet for too long.