Prime Minister Robert Abela has yet to deny a single accusation made against him under oath by Judge Lawrence Mintoff, despite the fact that 48 hours have now passed, Nationalist Party leader Alex Borg said on Thursday.

“Our people deserve integrity from their politicians. Always and in every circumstance, but even more so in a serious process such as the appointment of a Chief Justice,” the PN said.

In a recorded message shared on social media, Borg said that from the very beginning of the process he had acted with integrity towards Robert Abela, having put forward no fewer than four names to be considered for this important role.

“However, once again Robert Abela chose to turn even this position into a political football,” the PN leader said.

The PN leader said that throughout this process, together with the rest of the Nationalist Parliamentary Group, he had remained consistent at all times: maintaining confidentiality, as well as respect for and distance from the judiciary, as should always be the case. Alex Borg stated that at no point did he speak to any judge about this position.

Despite more than 48 hours having passed since the sworn statement of Judge Wenzu Mintoff became public, the Prime Minister has yet to deny a single accusation made by the Judge, the party observed.

According to his sworn letter, Judge Mintoff stated that Robert Abela refused his nomination, as well as that of other judges, not because they lacked the required credentials, but because accepting them would have made it appear as though he was lowering his stature as Prime Minister.

This, Borg said, is not the opinion of someone observing the process from the outside: It is a sworn statement by a judge who spoke to the Prime Minister on several occasions, and for whom, more than anyone else, an oath carries significant weight.

“Now more than ever, it has become clear that anything proposed by the Opposition, whether proposals to improve people’s lives or a nomination made in the national interest, is rejected by the Prime Minister not because it lacks merit, but simply because his priority is to protect his own stature,” the party said.

Borg said that people do not want this type of politics. People want cooperation, something, he stressed, he offered throughout this entire process, because the well-being of the Maltese and Gozitan people comes before anything else.

We have reached this point because of the Prime Minister’s behaviour, and the public is still waiting for a reply from Robert Abela, Borg concluded.