Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil said this evening that he would take further steps against former health minister Joe Cassar if there were new developments that merited stricter action.

Addressing a press conference, Dr Busuttil also insisted that one had to make a distinction between resigning from a role and resigning from the party and parliament.

He was replying to a press conference held earlier in the day by minister Chris Cardona and MP Deborah Schembri, who accused him of failing to act after it was alleged that Dr Cassar had home works amounting to €8,000 paid for by controversial businessman Joe Gaffarena.

He insisted that, when he asked Dr Cassar to resign from his role as Opposition culture spokesperson, he had shown that he truly practiced what he preached.

Asked why he had not demanded Dr Cassar’s resignation from the PN, Dr Busuttil said he had spoken to the former minister and decided that he could no longer hold onto his shadow government role. However, unlike the Giovanna Debono case, there were no allegations of illegalities in Dr Cassar’s case, nor about misuse of public money. As such, there was no reason for Dr Cassar to also to resign from the party and parliament.

He recalled how Manuel Mallia had resigned from his role as Home Affairs Minister but was still a member of the PL and Parliament. Even in the case of Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon, no one was demanding his resignation from the party. 

Insisting that there was no element of criminal activities in Dr Cassar’s case, Dr Busuttil insisted that between Gaffarena and Joe Cassar he chose to believe the latter. He emphasised that the PN MP was denying the €8,000 allegation.

Pressed on the matter, Dr Busuttil said there could be different degrees to an action and in Joe Cassar’s case there were, so far, no grounds to dismiss him from the party. “However I do not exclude anything and if there happen to be other developments that warrant further action I will not shy away from taking this further,” he told journalists.

Dr Busuttil said he had not known about the Cassar-Gaffarena relationship before the news broke in the media. He had kept in contact with the former minister as developments unfolded.

The Opposition Leader said he was different from the Prime Minister, who had promised to introduce a culture of resignations. The PM was today "drowning" in scandals. “Today he sent Chris Cardona to address a press conference about honest politics. What can I say? No comment,” the PN Leader said. “You would have really hit the slippery slope when you do not realise how ridiculous you are for trying to teach us the subject of which you are the antithesis.”

He also turned his guns on Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon, who was implicated in the Old Mint Street scandal. The case had not only shown the level of intimacy he had with Marco Gaffarena but also involved a criminal element. “They went on holiday together and spoke about the expropriation deal before it was concluded.  Gaffarena went to the Lands Department which falls under Falzon’s responsibility, and decided how much to get paid. This happened twice. The government did not approach the original owners, it only wanted to buy the property from Gaffarena. The value was inflated and the government also bought the property when it has no use for it. The IAID said the deal was illegal. And the deal was signed by Michael Falzon.”

Dr Busuttil said Joe Gaffarena was implicated in two other scandals – the illegal petrol station which was sanctioned by the PL government and the business deals with the sons of former police commissioner Ray Zammit, who were supposed to investigate a murder case involving a member of the Gaffarena family. Michael Falzon was also being paid €260,000 in what is supposedly an early retirement package.

“Michael Falzon should have resigned. Since he did not, Muscat should have sacked him, but he did not. The reason is that the scandals happened in a department that ultimately falls under the responsibility of the Prime Minister himself. That is why Muscat has not taken action – if he takes action against Falzon he would also have to take action against himself.”

He noted that the Lands Department was also involved in the Australia Hall, Café Permier, Siggiewi PL club and the GWU-ARMS lease scandals.

“High standards require that Muscat remove Falzon, close down the Gaffarena petrol station immediately and reverse the sale of half of the Old Mint Street property immediately.”