[WATCH] MPs demand Franco Debono's resignation from parliament

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi rallied the support of his parliamentary group yesterday evening, with MPs declaring their full trust and loyalty towards him and calling on MP Franco Debono to resign, but stopped short of expelling him from the party.

Gonzi emerged from the PN's headquarters in Pietà without releasing any comments to the media. He had just watched his maverick MP venting his frustrations with the party and its leadership on television on Bondiplus. "We have already issued a statement, and I have nothing else to add," Gonzi told reporters as he walked to his car.

It was indeed a very long day for Gonzi who arrived at the PN's headquarters at 5pm and also chaired a meeting of the party's administrative council that set out the agenda and the script that was to be discussed within the parliamentary group.

It was 10:20pm when Gonzi left the party headquarters, more than an hour and a half after the parliamentary group meeting ended. He stayed on with party secretary-general Paul Borg Olivier, MEP David Casa and PN information secretary Frank Psaila and watched Debono on Bondiplus.

The meeting was reportedly tense with MPs concerned about the dwindling prospect of government holding on to office in the wake of Franco Debono's stand not to support government.

Facing his MPs around him in the main hall on the third floor of the Dar Centrali, Gonzi spared no words in explaining the seriousness of the situation, where he is being pushed into calling an election at a critical time for the economy.

MPs encouraged him to hang on, but others warned against allowing an unofficial social media campaign close to the party to demonise Franco Debono, with some blogs going as far as describing him as a madman.

A number of MPs urged the party to be cautious in tolerating such discourse, prompting the Prime Minister to mention Malta Independent columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia by name, expressed his disapproval of her blogposts on Debono.

Gonzi later refused to comment on his internal condemnation of Caruana Galizia's attacks on Debono and other MPs.

During the meeting, MPs stressed that it was unacceptable for the party to allow bloggers to mock Debono or any other person as a lunatic. Although in disagreement with his position, some MPs made it clear to Gonzi that Debono was not "the madman others make him out to be".

Earlier, ministers and MPs left the building tight-lipped, except for the outspoken transport minister Austin Gatt who emerged in typically jovial mood, sarcastically inviting his driver to talk to the media.

"Tell them George... you can tell them everything," Gatt chuckled as he walked to his car.

The minister's jokes were an anti-climax to the comments he gave earlier when he arrived, categorically stating that Franco Debono must resign when asked to say if a no-confidence motion was to be called in parliament.

Francis Zammit Dimech commented that the Prime Minister "should not make the same mistakes Alfred Sant did back in 1998." The rest of the parliamentary group members remained silent as they arrived for the meeting, and left.

But the party released a statement signed by parliamentary whip David Agius which stated the group's  "full trust" in Lawrence Gonzi's leadership.

The statement said that Debono's recent declarations and actions were seriously compromising the country's stability and called on him to resign from parliament.

"The parliamentary group considers Franco Debono's behaviour to be a serious act of disloyalty and impropriety towards the leadership and structures of the Nationalist Party, as well as towards his colleagues, the party members and the constituents who elected him.

"While we understand the role of every MP in presenting their opinions and ideas for the party's internal dialogue, this must never compromise the collegiality of the decisions the party takes.

"Nobody has the right, for any reason, to threaten the government's and the country's stability, especially in the current international circumstances. Nobdoy has the right to betray the wishes and intentions of their constituents; in this case the only honourable way out for him is to resign from Parliament.

Yesterday's meeting will be followed up tonight by a meeting of the PN executive, which includes both MPs and the PN's administration.

On Sunday, Gonzi said he will not be calling for a vote of confidence in parliament, after Debono called for his resignation in the wake of Cabinet reshuffle that promoted three parliamentary secretaries, but did not include Debono.

The reshuffle included the splitting of the home affairs and justice ministry, one of Debono's key demands in his solo campaign on criminal justice reform.

In comments to MaltaToday Franco Debono said he would not be supporting the government in any votes, including a prospective money bill - the Budget Measures Implementation Bill - whose rejection has the same effect as a vote of no-confidence. Debono effectively robs the government of its one-seat majority.

While the recent €40 million cuts in government expenditure do not require any parliamentary approval, the budgetary appropriations will require approval by the House.

The MP has also vowed to support a motion of no-confidence if it is presented by the Opposition.

Labour leader Joseph Muscat has called on Gonzi to call for a vote of confidence, but it is not yet clear whether the PL will be presenting a vote of no-confidence.

The Budget Measures Implementation Bill could also be a testing ground for the Opposition's next move, especially in the light of statements by Muscat that his party would not take a partisan stand on the crisis of government, but also take "decisions that may raise criticism."

The Prime Minister has been setting much store on the economic crisis afflicting EU member states, and that early elections will destablise his five-year programme.