The Parliamentary Group of the Nationalist Party on Wednesday said that the Maltese people deserve to be represented in a Parliament that is run impartially, seriously, and democratically, rather than with political bias and in the partisan interests of the party in government.

Regrettably, the Parliamentary Group noted that the manner in which Speaker Anġlu Farrugia is leading Parliament is hindering the PN from fulfilling its role as the Opposition in accordance with Malta's Constitution. As a result, the 123,000 Maltese citizens who voted for the PN in the last general election are being deprived of the constitutional representation to which they are entitled, the PN said.

"As has been evident on multiple occasions, Speaker Anġlu Farrugia continues to run Parliament with the same prejudice against the Partit Nazzjonalista's Parliamentary Group that he demonstrated when he was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party," the PN said.

The PN's Parliamentary Group said that in this legislature alone, Speaker Anġlu Farrugia has:

1.       Issued numerous rulings that are inconsistent with each other and go against the spirit and intent of the Standing Orders, practices, customs, and traditions of the Maltese Parliament;

2.       Rejected every request for an urgent parliamentary debate put forward by the Opposition, including those concerning:

(a)      The tragic death of young Jean Paul Sofia;

(b)      The €400 million fraud at the expense of Maltese and Gozitan patients in the Vitals and Steward case;

(c)      The theft of over 200 kilogrammes of drugs right under the nose of the Armed Forces of Malta;

(d)      The failure and closure of the national airline, Air Malta;

(e)      The Ombudsman's report on abuses at the Corradino Correctional Facility and the 14 people who died while in State custody; and

(f)      The resignation or dismissal of former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna from his post as Governor of the Central Bank of Malta and of Ronald Mizzi as Permanent Secretary.

3.       Was complicit in shielding the Prime Minister, Ministers, and Parliamentary Secretaries from accountability regarding breaches of the code of ethics, as he, in his role as Chairman of the Standing Committee on Standards in Public Life, voted against or abstained from imposing sanctions on those found guilty;

4.       Failed to afford PN MPs the same protection he granted to Government MPs, even in clear cases of threats, insults, and false allegations against them;

5.       Refrained from taking action when parliamentary questions were left unanswered on time or adequately, and when Ministers failed to provide copies of documents they themselves referred to in their replies;

6.       Took no action to increase the number of sittings allocated for debates on numerous bills and motions presented by Partit Nazzjonalista MPs, limiting them to a single session every six months.

The PN's Parliamentary Group considers all these actions as abuses that should not be tolerated or sanctioned in a democracy.

Therefore, the Parliamentary Group will immediately request an urgent meeting with Speaker Anġlu Farrugia so that a delegation can directly and clearly convey the Parliamentary Group's position and demand immediate remedies and actions, the PN said.

"It is truly condemnable that Prime Minister Robert Abela, following in his predecessor's footsteps, continues to manipulate and control Speaker Anġlu Farrugia to silence and obstruct PN MPs from fulfilling their constitutional duties as the Opposition. Equally scandalous is the fact that Speaker Anġlu Farrugia continues to render himself a partisan and anti-democratic political tool in the hands of Robert Abela," the PN said.

PL statement

In reply, the Labour Party said the PN press statement was yet another "vicious attack" on Speaker Anglu Farrugia. "It is another confirmation that a PN MP who barely made it to Parliament at the last general election, has promoted himself de facto leader of his party, has grown bigger than the party itself, leads Bernard Grech by the nose and is doing all this for his own interests: launching vile attacks on targets of his own choosing. Currently, his target is Speaker Anglu Farrugia," the PL said.

PN MP Karol Aquilina has been attacking Farrugia relentlessly in successive parliamentary sittings. He called him 'obscene' and 'unable to think'.

Aquilina's "hysterical attacks" on Farrugia brought him widespread condemnation, and many of his parliamentary colleagues refrained from backing him up, the PL said.

Faced with this situation, Aquilina retaliated and "has now ordered Bernard Grech to launch an attack on the Speaker", the PL claimed.

Aquilina's aim is to make his PN parliamentary 'colleagues' complicit in his senseless attacks, forcing them to back him up publicly.

If Bernard Grech still has some authority left within the party, he must comdemn Aquilina's arrogant behaviour, the PL contended.

"As for the rest of the PN MPs, who in private say that Aquilina is embarrassing them, now is the time to stand up and be counted," the PL said.

.