The Nationalist Party today said that Premier Muscat is putting the cart before the horse in declaring without any conditionality that part of the AUM University will be located in Żonqor.
The accreditation of AUM application is supposedly still under NCFHE scrutiny, which leads the Opposition to the logical question: “When Muscat is certain that AUM will be developed than what use is NCFHE’s process?”
In a statement, Shadow Minister for Education and Employment Therese Comodini Cachia expressed her serious concern towards a government which absolutely has no qualms on wiping away the checks and balances which are in our laws because its interest is other than ensuring the highest standards in tertiary education.
In her statement Comodini Cachia reaffirmed her disagreement on the term 'national interest' which has been introduced through LN 150/15, which the Government now seems to be implementing and sees no point in reconsidering.
The Nationalist Party deplored the bulldozer attitude by Premier Muscat and Education Minister Evarist Bartolo in deciding on such a controversial application before given the green light by the competent authority, which further confirms that independent authorities and the Government are today one and the same thing.
In the absence of any communication by the NCFHE on the said application, Shadow Minister Comodini Cachia called upon NCFHE Chairman to clarify whether any decision has indeed been taken on the application which led to Premier Muscat’s unconditional statement that part the university will be located at Zonqor.
Consequently, in the absence of any decision by NCFHE on the AUM University, the Opposition is seriously concerned with the Government manipulation of such authority which like others has become a puppet in its hands and calls upon Premier Muscat for a clear and unequivocal explanation.
In the eventuality of a decision on the sanctioning of the AUM application, the Opposition is even further dismayed by the fact that such an important decision, which attracted considerable interest by the media, academics and students, was not even deemed worth communicating; leading therefore to the Nationalist Party to, once again, call on Premier Muscat to (a) publish the agreement with Sadeen Group and (b) the sanction letter by NCFHE granting formal AUM accreditation to operate as University; because the people deserve to know.