Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi has made a very strong claim over the last few days, but his claim has so far remained unsubstantiated.

Speaking at the Council of Europe, after the approval of a damning report on the rule of law in Malta that specifically focuses on the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, Azzopardi said he has information that the heinous crime was ordered by people “with access to the highest corridors of power” in Malta.

The PN MP, who is no stranger to controversy and who has recently attacked his own party leadership on social media, reiterated his statement several times over the past few days.

But Azzopardi has failed to go further and explain himself fully.

The PN MP is representing the Caruana Calizia family in the court case against the three men accused of carrying out the crime. As such he is privy to information that the rest of us aren’t.

When Daphne Caruana Galizia was murdered in October 2017, Opposition Leader Adrian Delia was quick to claim that this was a political murder. The party has since softened its stance on the issue, especially after media reports that the murder could have been connected to the journalist’s investigations into criminal gangs.

This could be the reason why the PN has so far not endorsed Azzopardi’s claims. It might be that the party has learnt the Egrant lesson and is unwilling to back bombshell claims that could very well turn out to be untrue. Indeed, Adrian Delia has so far failed to answer questions sent to him by this newspaper.

The main point here is that, if Azzopardi really holds such information – which would surely be crucial for the case to be solved – then he should waste no time and go to the police or the presiding magistrate.

Now, Azzopardi might argue that he has no faith in the police or the judiciary. He might be buying time until a public inquiry takes place, as ordered by the Council of Europe. But the fact remains that a public inquiry would have no power of prosecution, and the claims would still have to be taken up by the Malta police, and eventually end up before the Maltese courts.

So the question remains: Why does Azzopardi not just hand over the information he has to the authorities? It has long been argued, including by the Opposition, that the case has dragged on for too long and, seeing that the Attorney General has not yet issued a Bill of Indictment, the suspects could soon walk out on bail.

But surely, with the information supposedly held by Azzopardi, the case would have been closed by now. Not only that, but the masterminds behind the murder would be facing charges as well.

Azzopardi has a moral and legal obligation to present the evidence is in possession of to the relevant authorities for investigation.

Azzopardi has to understand that he cannot just throw these claims around and stop there. He must also understand that, while he is a lawyer representing the family, he is also a Member of Parliament representing the Nationalist Party.

He knows that this case has received worldwide attention. He also knows that the fact that he is both an MP and lawyer to the Caruana Galizia family gives his statements more weight. But without follow-up and investigations, his claims remain just that.

By stopping short of naming these people “with access to the highest corridors of power”, Azzopardi is only fuelling speculation and playing into the hands of the government, which is accusing him of intentionally dirtying Malta’s name.

Last week at the CoE, Azzopardi had the best platform he could have hoped for to expose this supposed link between Daphne’s death and Malta’s political class, yet he didn’t. He has also failed to answer questions sent by this newspaper.

Is it because he is unsure about the information he has, or is he playing some sort of political game?

The people, indeed the world has a right to know who the people behind the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia are and Jason Azzopardi should tell us if he really knows.

If he is unwilling to say the names publicly, he should at least tell the courts so that they may do their job and investigate.