The Public Appointments Committee has approved Labour’s former CEO Randolph De Battista’s nomination as Malta’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva on Monday.

De Battista was formally approved by four votes in favour, and two votes against. All government MPs on the committee voted in favour of his appointment, whilst PN MPs voted against.

Opposition MPs sitting on the committee questioned whether Prime Minister Robert Abela’s announcement to appoint De Battista as Geneva ambassador last month was a move to silence De Battista.

PN MP Adrian Delia said that while the committee did not question De Battista’s competencies, the Opposition side was concerned with how the appointment was made.

Delia said that the appointment was purely political, “motivated not so much by the competences but by the need to remove an outspoken member of parliament from the government benches.” He added that such a move could not be approved.

During the 30-minute session, the Labour MP faced questioning over his nomination, with the Opposition questioning his abrupt shift from an MP to a diplomatic position.

Delia questioned whether the appointment was merely intended to remove De Battista from his parliamentary role.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo who also sits at the committee defended De Battista’s appointment, saying that it should be based on competence, and that De Battista had already previously contributed at a diplomatic level. He continued that the appointment of non-career diplomats was more transparent than ever.

On his part, De Battista avoided political debate, and said that his role as ambassador would require a different approach from his political responsibilities.

Delia also questioned whether De Battista’s outspoken political views would be silenced in his new diplomatic role, to which De Battista responded that his work would continue, but in a different context, serving Malta on the international stage.

De Battista also highlighted his experience as part of former deputy Prime Minister Louis Grech’s team. He continued that he had established contacts over the years at the World Health Organisation, the World Bank, and with the assistant to the Secretary General of the United Nations.

He continued that his belief is in multilateral diplomacy, and said he expected to focus on health and human rights, especially children’s rights.