Hyzler cannot investigate MP’s oranges gift reported in police complaint

The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life will not investigate a complaint by independent candidate Arnold Cassola into MPs who gifted food items to constituents.

Cassola had claimed MPs Silvio Schembri, Silvio Parnis, Alex Muscat and Rosianne Cutajar distributed food items to particular cohorts of voters, for the express aim of influencing votes, which would amount to an offence under the General Elections Act.

Hyzler informed Cassola that such a breach of rules, which would take place once an election is called, was a criminal matter for the police to investigate. He reiterated his appeal so that complaints that fall under other authorities, are made directly to them because he said that his office should not prejudice any investigation by the police.

The Cassola complaint was one of the first kinds of reaction to MPs who gift constituents with food or other items: former Nationalist minister Francis Zammit Dimech had once flooded his district with teddy-bears, his Cabinet colleague John Dalli had produced a perfume with his name on it, while Nationalist MP Robert Arrigo had distributed stress-balls. Recently, former Labour minister Konrad Mizzi distributed bottles of wine with his face emblazoned on it.

The civil society group Repubblika even called on the Police Commissioner to investigate Cutajar, a former parliamentary secretary who resigned in the wake of a Hyzler investigation for her role in brokering a property acquisition by magnate Yorgen Fenech, after she uploading images of herself treating a number of elderly people to bags of oranges.

Cutajar uploaded a number of images showing herself giving small bags of oranges to elderly residents in the Smartcare Dar Pinto home in Qormi, her hometown.

“This care home is found in the electoral district Rosianne Cutajar was elected in, and will be contesting the next general election in. It is clear that the gifting of food broke Section V of the General Elections Act, Chapter 354, Art. 54-56),” Repubblika present Robert Aquilina said in a press conference outside of the police depot in Floriana.

The nursing home praised Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar for visiting its residents and gifting them with small bags of oranges.

Similarly, former parliamentary secretary for the elderly Silvio Parnis had in 2020 distributed roly-polys to elderly patients in care homes, quarantined during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the message “Courage” emblazoned on them. Parnis subsequently lost his Cabinet post in a reshuffle, largely on account of the spread of the virus inside care homes.

Silvio Schembri, economy minister, has also distributed cupcakes for Mother’s Day.