Briguglio: Those asking for proof need only look back at the Panama Papers

Thousands of supporters answered PN leader Simon Busuttil’s call to join in the demonstration against corruption in Valletta this afternoon 

Michael Briguglio called for the Prime Minister Joseph Muscat to resign. Photo: James Bianchi/MediaToday
Michael Briguglio called for the Prime Minister Joseph Muscat to resign. Photo: James Bianchi/MediaToday

The political crisis the country is currently going through started the moment Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was elected to power, according to former Alternattiva Demokratika chairman Michael Briguglio.

“Today’s scandal did not start three days ago,” said Briguglio. “It started the moment Muscat was elected to power and when the offshore companies were opened.”

Addressing thousands of people who attended the demonstration organised by the Nationalist Party, including former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi, Briguglio said that those asking for proof needed only look at the Panama Papers revelations.

The demonstration was organised following allegations by Daphne Caruana Galizia, who claimed that Michelle Muscat, wife of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat holds a share in Egrant.

“The facts are there. All the proof you need is on the internet. This matter is like a jigsaw puzzle slowly coming together. Once completed, it will only read corruption,” said Briguglio, adding that he was convinced that more evidence would soon come to light.

Photos: James Bianchi/MediaToday
Photos: James Bianchi/MediaToday

He compared Muscat, and those close to him, to a “gang pigging out”, insisting the country was now in the midst of an institutional crisis.

“With one resignation after the other inside the Police Force, we now have a police commissioner made in Zimbabwe,” he said to applause.

He took the police commissioner to task for choosing to continue eating rabbit rather than immediately launch an investigation into Pilatus Bank on Thursday night – the night Daphne Caruana Galizia claimed to have evidence showing that the wife of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat holds a share in Egrant.

Briguglio insisted that the magisterial inquiry ordered by the Prime Minister was a “fake inquiry”, called too late in the day.

“We are not stupid and nobody is taking this inquiry seriously. They have turned us into a banana republic,” he said.

He stressed that corruption was undermining the country’s institutions and that a situation had developed where those tasked with protecting the nation were complicit in corruption.

“We cannot give up on politics but we must trust clean politicians. We demand Joseph Muscat’s resignation,” he continued.

Turning to Labour supporters, Briguglio said that he, who hails from a family with mixed political views, knew how hurt some Labourites were.

“I know many Labour supporters who say that their party has been taken over by a gang… a criminal gang,” said Briguglio.

Marlene Farrugia: Muscat has given the country an illusion based on propaganda

Partit Demokratiku leader and former Labour MP Marlene Farrugia said that those present had gathered in order to ensure a better country for future generations.

“The electorate voted for a vision that was meant to unite the country and one that would have ensured a transparent government, as Malta deserves,” said Farrugia.

“We gave him our trust but, we soon realised that the vision was only a vision on paper, one led by propaganda,” she continued.

Farrugia too stressed that last year’s Panama Papers scandal was enough to condemn Muscat because he stood by Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri, when it was clear that they had set up Panamanian companies under the assumption they would never get caught.

“When the latest scandal hit, the Prime Minister had a chance to exonerate himself,” she said. “Had he and his family been innocent, he would have had no problem in sending the police to seal off Pilatus Bank and preserve the evidence.”

In addition to this, she said, proof of corruption lay in the fact that the country was being “sold off piece by piece”, with contracts that are hidden from the public. She argued that this alone is indicative of bad governance and stressed that people were demanding a serious and responsible government, that could be trusted to distribute wealth in a just manner.

Marlene Farrugia
Marlene Farrugia

Farrugia concluded by thanking Daphne Caruana Galizia for her work, while describing the fear that Caruana Galizia and her family “must definitely be enduring”.

“She is a strong woman: one you may not agree with but you can definitely work with,” she said.

EPP Chairman calls for Muscat's resignation

The chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber said in a statement that it is unprecedented for a Prime Minister of a country holding the Presidency of the Council of the EU to refuse to resign when he is under formal magisterial investigation.

He said justice in Malta only applies to common people and not to the select few.

"Malta is an EU country and, more worryingly, it is holding the rotating presidency of the EU. Needless to say, this is linked to Malta’s reputation as a stable country where EU and foreign companies can do business without unnecessary risks. I have one thing to say to the Maltese Prime Minister: reputation is essential for a country like Malta and it seems that you have forgotten this tenet to the detriment of the Maltese people," he said.

Weber thanked Busuttil for “showing leadership in the circumstances” and for fighting corruption.

“At least foreign investors in Malta know that there is another Malta which values honesty, integrity and sustainability,” he added.