Judge Robert Mangion has upheld a request that the Prime Minister and Justice Minister testify in the case over the publication of the Egrant enquiry.

PN Leader Adrian Delia filed the Constitutional case in a bid to obtain a full copy of the Egrant inquiry report.

The conclusions from Magistrate Aaron Bugeja's inquiry on the ownership of the secret Panamanian company Egrant were published in July. The Prime Minister has said that he wants the entire inquiry to be published despite the fact that the Attorney General was against such a move.

But so far only the conclusions of the report have been published, exonerating the PM and his wife Michelle from the claims that they owned the Panamanian company, but the Opposition has insisted that it should be given a full copy of the 1,500-page report. 

As constitutional proceedings resumed on Tuesday morning the court was informed that there was to be no cross-examination of the Attorney General, who had been summoned as a witness by Delia’s lawyers.

AG Peter Grech had testified during the previous sitting on September 25, explaining how he had first given the Prime Minister a photocopied version of the full Egrant inquiry report and then mailed an electronic copy to the Justice Minister upon the latter’s request as legal counsel to the PM.

When the case continued today, lawyer Victoria Buttigieg, from the AG’s office informed the court that there would be no cross-examination of the witness.

In view of this, Dr Vincent Galea, assisting Dr Delia, informed the court that he was requesting that the Prime Minister and the Justice Minister were to be summoned to testify at the next sitting.

The case was adjourned to next month when the Prime Minister and Justice Minister are to appear personally to testify under oath.

Speaking to the press after the sitting, Adrian Delia said the Attorney General’s office had once again tried to keep the Prime Minister and the Justice Minister from testifying but his argument had been thrown out by the court.

He said it was important that the PM and the Justice Minister testify because the PN’s case is based on two principles – freedom of expression and the right to information, and the political imbalance created by the AG’s decision.

“We are satisfied that at least there are the courts to defend our rights and the constitution,” Delia said.