Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil said today that the widening of the investigation into the issuing of residency permits is “evidence, if any is needed at this stage, that what we are facing is institutionalised corruption, no less. It also goes to show that the opposition was right all along insisting for an independent inquiry”.
He said that at this stage, “things have become so widespread that all public trust in public administration, when it comes to issuing residence permits to non-EU citizens, has collapsed. Public trust needs to be reinstated and this can only be done through an independent inquiry conducting its investigation into what happened, putting a stop to what is wrong and making recommendations on how the system can be changed. I have been asking for this from the very beginning, and today I am becoming increasingly suspicious as to why the Prime Minister continues to resist this obvious call by the opposition which is supported by the independent media”. He explained that specifically, a lack of trust in Identity Malta can be seen.
Dr Busuttil was giving an interview to The Malta Independent while in Brussels to attend the European People’s Party Summit, just ahead of the European Council Summit that will occur later today. The EPP Summit will see Heads of State belonging to the EPP group as well as Party leaders meet.
Earlier today, in a statement issued by the Department of Information the government said that the investigation started after information was passed on by the government to the Security Services. This led to the identification of abuses that have been carried out for at least five years, the DOI said.
Dr Busuttil would have liked Malta to be among the countries that would immediately benefit from relocation
Turning to the agreement reached yesterday regarding the relocation of the 120,000 refugees, Dr Busuttil said that when dealing with such a controversial issue, there is bound to be resistance. “There has always been resistance on the subject, since I was an MEP here in Parliament making the same arguments finally being endorsed. Resistance has slowly been overcome however the problem has also expanded, until it recently engulfed the continent itself”.
He welcomed the decision made yesterday for responsibility sharing. “As an Opposition we have been playing our part. PN MEP Roberta Metsola has been making these arguments on behalf of both the PN and the EPP as she has been the spokesperson on the issue for the past years. Finally, common sense has prevailed. A European problem should have a European answer and we are finally reaching that stage”.
Dr Busuttil would have liked the Maltese government to have persuaded the European governments to include Malta among the countries that would immediately benefit “as we have an accumulation of number arriving in Malta. With that said, on the whole, we warmly welcome the agreement reached and I hope it will be endorsed by the rest of the summit today”.
Youths made position clear on embryo freezing – Simon Busuttil
Asked for his opinion on Embryo Freezing, Dr Busuttil again said that in order for a good public discussion to take place, “we ought to know what the government plans to do. The Opposition’s position is already in the law, which we enacted three years ago. What we had to say about the subject is already in the law, but we do not know why and how government wants to change the law. Once we know what government plans to do then we will have a reaction to that, as will be expected of us. I have already set up a task force within the party to consult and come up with a studied approach to any possible changes there might be, but as a first step we must know what the Prime Minister intends to do. It is a bit bizarre that government has opened up a public debate on an issue without having the decency o tell the people what it intends to do.
Turning to yesterday’s Parliamentary motion presented by youths, he said – “in a way it was a bit of a blind debate, discussing something without knowing where the government and the country is heading. On the other hand these young people made their position amply clear to government and the Prime Minister who was present at the time. I hope the Prime Minister listened to what these young people had to say, their concerns, and when he comes out with proposals he takes what society feels at large into account”.
Dr Busuttil expressed his thoughts about the upcoming EPP Summit that will occur shortly, just prior to the European Council Summit today. He expects it to be a heated summit given that both German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will be in the same room arguing on yesterday’s agreement. Dr Busuttil said he intends to participate in order to point out that what is being decided upon today is exactly what Malta has been calling for over the years. “I will also state that the future of the EU itself is at stake as the EU is all about facing common challenges together rather than leaving each country to fend for itself. I expect the EPP to come out with a consolidated position today which they intend to present to the Summit later today”.
PN MEP Roberta Metsola said that she is in charge of drafting the strategy on migration for the European Parliament. As the EPP we have our own position to put forward. She said that German Chancellor Angela Merkel is the driving force behind implementation of a responsibility sharing mechanism. She drafter a two-pager for leaders to discuss at the EPP Summit today which “will guide and inspire them in the way they will frame out their conclusions at the European Council. It’s, in a way meeting as the EPP Cabinet before the Summit and our aim is to have the EPP united. It will be difficult due to diametrically opposing positions between Merkel and Orban but we are hoping that everyone will understand that this is an issue that has to be tackled with concrete solutions.
Photos by Karl Portelli