News 08/09/2002

More than simply a shadow minister for Home Affairs

Dr Gavin Gulia, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs has had a rather fast paced political life. Mario Schembri Wismayer interviews him

The interview with Dr Gavin Gulia, Labour spokesman for Home Affairs starts off a little uncertainly, as just as I come to a stop outside his office in Zebbug, he phones me up to tell me that he has been detained in court. I philosophically settle down to wait in the sun. Dr Gulia arrives about twenty minutes later and we enter his office.

"I graduated as a lawyer in 1988. A year before that I graduated as a notary public. My speciality is commercial law," Dr Gulia informs me as we settle down around his desk in his small but well ordered office.

I ask him whether he has done anything else besides practising law. "No. Just thirteen years of law, save for a brief stint in government." So how did he get involved in politics? "I first entered the public arena through the local council.

In 1993 I got elected as an independent candidate. I then resigned my position on the council to contest the general elections in 1996. My official political affiliation started quite late in my life, in 1995. This is because my father Oliver and my uncle Wallace were judges of the austere old school. Consequently, until they resigned, our lives were somewhat influenced by their very private and withdrawn lifestyle, which they deemed necessary to be able to carry out their duties effectively. Involvement in politics until their withdrawal was a definite no-no. Hence my political hibernation. My father’s lifestyle was so austere that he didn’t have any friends to speak of." I bring up the name of Gavino Gulia and the Cospicua square named after him. Is there any connection? "Yes he is related. He was not a lawyer, however. He was a professor of botany." I ask how the first involvement in politics actually, physically happened. ‘The leap’ occurred after getting elected to the local council; I found that I was enjoying very substantial support. All sorts of people kept encouraging me from all sides, so I decided to take the plunge in 1996. I contested the election on the 6th and 7th districts. I was elected and appointed Parliamentary Secretary for the Self-employed. I like to think that after creating the office to go with that position I left a good legacy for those who followed." I ask Dr Gulia what his current position in the party is. "Well. I am Main Spokesman for Home Affairs; that includes the police and civil prisons, citizenship, criminality, emigration, public registry, land registry and notary to the government."

I ask whether there was any reason for being given that portfolio. "That is the prerogative of the Leader of the party. I should add, however, that the Ministry of Home Affairs was in Alfred Sant’s office when he was Prime Minister, so it is an honour." I ask how it feels to be a ‘young blood’ in the party; does it make a difference to the contribution one can make? "Ideally there should be a mix of new and old faces. That way a sense of continuity is achieved while valuable fresh input is assimilated into the structure. The Labour Party has more youthful elements than the Nationalist Party at parliamentary group level. At this level the MLP has invested very well in its human resources." The name of John Rizzo, the new Commissioner of Police comes up. What does Dr Gulia think of him so far? "I have a very positive opinion of Mr Rizzo and I believe that this good opinion is universal. When he was suggested for the post, I had issued a statement, supporting the proposal.

He has a very good track record and he is a person of great integrity and honesty. There is nothing to criticise so far, but he still has to pass the test of time. The Police Corps cannot only depend on the Commissioner but also on his immediate aides. Mr Rizzo was made Assistant Commissioner under a Labour administration and Commissioner under a Nationalist administration." I point out to Dr Gulia that the head of the security service reports directly to a parliamentary group that is composed of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, the Minister of Home Affairs and the Foreign Minister. Would it not be better, in the interests of transparency if the parliamentary group were composed of backbenchers with, perhaps, fewer vested interests? "How can you be sure that ordinary parliamentarians don’t have vested interests? If that is the main reason behind the suggestion, then I don’t agree with it."

We touch upon the next general elections, which are quite close. What does Dr Gulia think of the competition he’ll be facing, in the shape of Alfred Mifsud, Anthony Zammit and Charles Buhagiar? "You’d better ask my constituents about my chances, rather than me. I have a great respect for the other candidates. Mifsud and Zammit are good friends of mine. Having said that, this district (the 7th) is difficult to contest. This is good because it stops you from becoming complacent or conceited. Competition helps to keep you politically active at the district level. I believe that rather than being a close contest between Labour candidates of this district, the competition will be between the Nationalist Party candidates and the Malta Labour Party." I ask Dr Gulia whether he thinks justice would be better served if tapping and other forms of intersection would be authorised by magistrates rather than by ministers, as is done at present. "Yes I agree. You wouldn’t have political contamination from magistrates. A minister (and here I mean any hypothetical minister) could politicise an investigation and might have a vested interest in doing so. I firmly believe that the law should be changed. Power should be placed with the magistrates. Abuse might still happen. One problem that is difficult to solve is how to ensure that the investigations don’t happen before authority for tapping is sought."

What of the MLP’s habit of picking on a topic and making a huge fuss about it. Is this always driven by a genuine suspicion that something is fishy? "This habit is not exclusive to the Labour Party. Affairs are put under the spotlight by both parties. Take drug dealing, for example. It is a huge issue in little Malta. When Quieroz was given a pardon, even the Attorney General had objected to this action, calling Queiroz a merchant of death. The Labour Party was morally obliged to call public attention to this. Another shining example is that of Zeppi l-Hafi. Two of the three pardons granted to him had nothing to do with the attempt to murder the Prime Minister's Personal assistant. Neither was it politically moral for the Prime Minister to negotiate privately at night with this character. The MLP was morally bound to raise the alarm. We were vindicated by the courts which freed Ian Farrugia, in spite of Zeppi l-Hafi’s evidence. He simply was not believed by the courts. In convicting Meinrad Calleja, Silvio Camilleri, speaking for the Attorney General invited the jury to ignore Zeppi l-Hafi’s evidence."

I ask Dr. Gulia what his reaction was when he first heard about the scandal of the two judges. "A great sadness and a shocking blow to the legal profession and even more so to the judiciary. However, let us not forget that the investigation is still under way and no conclusions can be definitely drawn until the whole process has come to its natural end. The judiciary, until the 1st of August had been uncontaminated. Now people are asking questions. Until this incident the judiciary enjoyed great respect and now they operate under the shadow of doubt. The case is that much more difficult to bear because it involves drugs." Almost inevitably, the question as to why lawyers tend to be seen in such a negative light comes up. "Lawyers render a service to the public. I believe that the problem has to do with the justice system. Justice delayed is justice denied. There is consensus that in Malta justice is far too slow; there is no end to a case and this is the rule rather than the exception. The public associate the lawyers with this particular aspect of justice. Everybody should shoulder the responsibility for this inefficiency, but the client attributes all this frustration to the lawyers." I ask if in Dr Gulia’s opinion, the scandal is a one off or the tip of an iceberg. "I have been working in the courts for thirteen years and I have never had reason to doubt the integrity of the judges. I’m not saying that they don’t make the occasional mistake, or that sometimes there isn’t a miscarriage of justice.

Our system is one of relative, not absolute justice. However corruption is definitely not widespread and I believe that if this case is proved, it will be a one-off. However now unfortunately people are suspecting it's the tip of an iceberg." What about the short term and longterm reactions? "We cannot pretend that nothing happened. The political world has to ensure that these things will not be allowed to happen again and that there won’t even be suspicion that they might be happening. I must stress that we cannot jump to conclusions about the judges. We will be in a position to make an evaluation only after the case has been decided. One thing that has to be seen to is the way judges are scrutinised and selected.

"The Minister of Justice has a somewhat limited sphere of action when it comes to these things because of the independence of the judiciary. Because of this, the sins of the judiciary are often visited on the head of the minister." I ask how it feels for a lawyer to expunge a client when he suspects that he really is guilty of what he is being charged. "It is up to the prosecution to find the accused guilty; it is the prosecution’s job to provide evidence to incriminate. I am not a policeman. If the police fail to prove the case against a client, then there is nothing morally wrong if the client is sent home free. We have the best kind of system because the onus of proof is on the prosecution. It is a safeguard for an innocent accused who could be any one of us." Leaving the technicalities of the law behind us, we revisit politics. I ask Dr Gulia what he felt when he found out that he was going to take over Dr Mangion’s position of Minister of Justice after Dr. Mangion had to resign over what many would call a technicality. "I would have preferred to have been appointed under different circumstances. I was informed of what had happened and asked whether I would accept the position. Obviously I was elated at being offered a ministerial position and I accepted." I ask Dr Gulia whether, in his opinion, political polarisation is increasing or decreasing. "Political issues tend to increase when there is a big issue. Political parties try and convince that their way is best and this increases polarisation. I must say, however, that recently the Nationalist Party have become rather arrogant and this has contributed to a rise in political tensions.

For example the nonchalant way the electoral way was elected springs to mind, as does the PBS saga on the EU information slots. Also, the government has an odd way of interpreting consensus; there is no question of compromise, but the notion of ‘you agree with what I’m saying and there will be consensus!’ " What is Dr. Gulia’s opinion about the EU? "I am convinced that Malta should not become a full member of the EU. There are more cons than pros. Malta should carry on in its vocation to be a medium of peace between North Africa and Europe and to do that it is important that we maintain our neutrality and non-alignment. Both would be compromised if we were to join the EU. Even from a trade perspective, the EU is not the only trading partner Malta has. We must not forget North America, Africa and Asia." What is Dr. Gulia’s favourite form of relaxation? "Watching the news on various stations. I also love super dinners cooked by my beautiful wife who is a superb chef; no wonder I have put on weight since I met her! On weekends I like meeting up with friends – we entertain each other in our homes. I also love dining out." Any hobbies? "I used to be an aircraft enthusiast; I used to collect photos of commercial and military planes. Whenever I go abroad, I try to invite myself into the cockpit during take off and landing. I love reading political material. Just now I’m reading Norma Hertz’s book called ‘Silent Take Over’ –it is about how large corporations are assuming the roles and duties of politicians."