Many lawyers, both PN and PL-leaning, are describing Owen Bonnici as “the most incompetent” Justice Minister ever, Justice Shadow Minister Jason Azzopardi said this afternoon.

Addressing a press conference in front of the court building, Dr Azzopardi said the controversy on the nomination of two new magistrates by the government was “a first class mess” created by Dr Bonnici. He said the government had intended for the appointments to breach the constitution.

Dr Azzopardi said “the minister who thinks he knows it all and does not need advice from others” had even stopped the usual consultation process in the appointment of members of the judiciary. “The previous administration would consult with the Chamber of Advocates and the Opposition before announcing the names of magistrates approved by cabinet. Neither we nor the chamber have been consulted.”

The Shadow Minsiter said the nomination of Speaker Anglu Farrugia’s daughter was “nothing but an exercise in nepotism and cronyism.” He accused the government of using even the judiciary to dish out favours.

Government sources confirmed with The Malta Independent that Dr Caroline Farrugia Frendo would be sworn in after 23 February – meaning that she would have satisfied the requirement of having served a minimum of seven years as a lawyer. But the Opposition is still objecting to the nomination, insisting that there was never a Magistrate or Judge who was appointed as soon as they reached the minimum requirement.

Dr Azzopardi insisted that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and the Justice Minister had to shoulder the political responsibility for these breaches of the constitution.

PN candidate Matthew Paris said this was a serious issue because it was about democracy and rule of law. The government, he said, should have withdrawn the nominations as soon as controversy erupted. The situation is made worse because both nominations are in breach of the constitution, as confirmed by the Dean of the Law Faculty.

PN candidate Roselyn Borg said decisions like these “should always be taken in the best interest of the public.”

According to reports, it was said during yesterday’s meeting of the Commission for the Administration of Justice that Magistrate Francesco Depasquale had set a precedent in 2008 when he was nominated to sit on the Employment Commission by the previous administration. He was appointed magistrate in 2011.

Asked about this, Dr Azzopardi was quick to point out that Dr Depasquale’s nomination on the Employment Commission had been annulled and this had been published in the Government Gazette. As such, Dr Depasquale had never served on the commission. He accused Owen Bonnici of misleading and not telling the truth and said that this was not the way to tackle good governance “head-on,” like Joseph Muscat said a few days ago.

He also accused the Justice Minister of lying. “He lied to my face when he told Parliament that me and him have spoken regularly. In three years he has never sent for me or spoken to me on the justice sector.”

Asked on the impending retirement of Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri, Dr Azzopardi said he hoped the government would not make another mess of it.