The debacle surrounding former PN MP Jason Azzopardi has been declared as “closed” by Bernard Grech; but the PN leader has said that he would not ignore what the former MP has to say in the future, despite his resignation from the party.
Grech was asked by The Malta Independent on Wednesday about the rift between him and Azzopardi, who responded to a remark by the party leader by alleging that the PN leader had taken donations in exchange for working for a presidential pardon for someone who was implied to be alleged Daphne Caruana Galizia murder mastermind Yorgen Fenech.
The rift ultimately led to Azzopardi being summoned to the party ethics board to give evidence. The former MP – who lost his parliamentary seat in March’s general elections – however resigned from the party before doing so, and the party subsequently said it had unanimous faith in Grech’s leadership.
Speaking to journalists, Grech again denied ever discussing a pardon “for anyone with anyone”, and replied in the negative when asked whether Azzopardi had ever brought up his concerns and allegations prior to the general election.
“My denial is clear and evident and it is very serene. I knew he couldn’t bring proof of this because it is something which didn’t happen, but I still gave him the opportunity – as things should be according to the rule of law within the party – to go before the ethics board and make his case. Unfortunately this did not happen, and for me the situation is closed there,” he said, replying to The Malta Independent.
Asked by this newsroom whether Azzopardi’s resignation from the party means that Grech will now ignore whatever he writes, Grech said that he does not ignore anything because he holds respect for everyone and their opinion, “especially that of people who are part of the PN family.”
“Maybe Jason Azzopardi will say things of interest and which will contribute to the party, so I cannot ignore what is said in the future because I do not know what it is,” he said.
Answering other questions, Grech said that to his knowledge, the party had not accepted any donations from the Fenech family as long as he has been PN leader.
He said that there need to be reforms on political party financing to make politics more transparent, and to remove the “shadows” of doubt that donations from private individuals and businesses may throw on the work of all political parties.
Asked whether he is considering closing down the party’s media house in an effort to control the PN’s mounting debts – which now stand at €32 million, Grech said that this is not something that he wants to do, particularly because the state broadcaster PBS “is being led by the Labour Party.”
“However, we need to look into creative ways on how to restructure the party’s media house so we can reduce expenses but keep it going,” he said.
Asked by Labour’s media house whether he sees it as a negative for his leadership that he was the only person to express an interest in contesting the PN leadership post, Grech said that much to the contrary it is positive because it is “a show of faith in my leadership and a sign that nobody thinks that they could have done better.”