One would be forgiven for thinking that Malta’s top diplomat George Vella has gone rogue of late. But as the saying goes, there are always two sides to every story, and the foreign affairs minister relishes the opportunity to air his side.
Dr Vella stirred controversy in parliament last week with a speech containing phrases like ‘rein in the media’ and ‘control the media.’
“I was misinterpreted. The message I was conveying had to be put in the context of the whole speech. I was making an appeal to the opposition benches, as that week there was a conciliatory mood in parliament. The day that I gave that speech was the day after Lawrence Gonzi was paid tribute to in the House,” Dr Vella said.
“I did not have any prepared notes, I was speaking from the heart. I was appealing for self-regulation of the partisan media. It was an appeal taken in the context of what I was talking about, and at no stage did I say that the media must be throttled,” Dr Vella clarified.
The minister has also come in for some stick for banning mobile phones from his office.
“Mobile phones have become a part of us, but the idea was to have a certain amount of security, and to avoid having what I say in private discussions manipulated. In the foreign ministry you get lots of appointments with different people. My concern is not my security, it’s national security. Certain proposals are sensitive. I do not know who has good intentions and who has bad intentions, Dr Vella said.
He explains how it was nigh on impossible to start turning patients away the day after he was elected, and he continues to hold a short clinic every Saturday morning.
“Everyone undergoes a transition at some point in their life, such as when taking on a different job and different responsibilities. In my case, I was a GP with a private practice since 1964. I couldn’t just stop my practice prior to the election, as it is impossible to predict whether I was going to be elected into government or not,” Dr Vella said.
Read the full interview in the Malta Independent on Sunday