The Opposition’s proposal to appoint a police commissioner via an approval of a two-thirds parliamentary majority cannot work in practice, Prime Minister Robert Abela said today.
Speaking to journalists after touring shops in Republic Street, Valletta, Abela said “the opposition’s proposal is definitely not conforming to the Venice Commission (recommendations) as nothing is mentioned in the commission's report about there being a need for 2/3 of the parliament, as the opposition is saying. The Venice Commission says that there needs to be a public call and the opposition’s proposition leaves this criteria out and in reality leaves it only up to politicians to appoint the new police commissioner.”
The government's proposition is one that starts from a public call which is then evaluated by the Public Service Commission, which is made up of two members from the opposition, two members from the government and a chairman approved by both sides. The PSC selects the two candidates it believes are the most suited. The PM then chooses one from the two options, and the matter is then taken to parliament for approval.
He added that he cannot take up both his and the opposition’s proposal because “the two proposals do not go together, as the 2/3 majority proposal is something that cannot work in practice.”
Abela was also asked if he consulted any police unions before making his decision, to which he replied that it is not a question of consulting with them as the proposal has already been made by the Venice Commission.
He said that “this model is one that is open to vetting and scrutiny and the opposition has every opportunity to ask any questions it wants to the candidate. There will be a public grilling that is televised and also the opposition has a say in the Public Service Commission. What is important is that the person we choose is not a puppet of the government and is left to do his job autonomously and independently.”
Asked by The Malta Independent on what remedies will be taken after Malta’s democracy was downgraded to ‘flawed’ in the Economic annual index, Abela said: “The plan is that we go to a full democracy by making the changes needed, and we have already started. He referred to reforms in the rule of law, reforms on how the judiciary is chosen and even the reform of how the police commissioner is chosen. We will keep building on this.
The PM was also questioned about his opinion on the 5% tax scheme which he had been reported to have criticised. He explained that this was a situation in which he was misquoted as he never said that it should be eliminated. “What we said was that there are situations where the local community is involved that require for further discussion so that there is a more level playing field,” Abela said.
In this afternoon's activity, the PM, accompanied by the Minister of Economy, Investment and Small Businesses Silvio Schembri, met shop owners and greeted any passers-by who wished to speak and take pictures with him.
In the press conference that followed, he explained that this is proof that he is prompting a government that listens to its people. “We are proving that we are pro-market as a government through what we have done today. This is the breath of fresh air we say the country is feeling.”
“Today we have experienced multiple comments of encouragement for us to keep doing what we are doing. We are seeing that our schemes are open and welcoming for more changes if needed. Our message is one of faith and encouragement that the economy will keep moving forward,” Schembri added.
The mayor of Valletta Alfred Zammit was also present and said that Valletta has been revived these past years but the retail industry still needs work.
“Restaurants here got a major shift forward but we have to strengthen retailers. They lost fame because other localities open till late so there is an ongoing discussion regarding an announcement in the future that once a week there is late night shopping from 10-10pm.”
Zammit appealed for sales persons to look at this as an opportunity to have more overtime and create more work for the country’s economy.