Pressure groups back Jonathan Ferris’s request for whistleblower status

Civil Society Network, Occupy Justice, il-Kenniesa and l-Awturi have publicly given their backing to ex-Police Inspector and ex-FIAU official Jonathan Ferris in his request to be granted whistleblower status. They maintain that it is vital that the Maltese State establishes without delay the whole truth with regards to all alleged abuses, not only in respect of those allegations which would result in an advantage for the government of the day if prosecuted.

The four NGOs insist that the Maltese deserve that their public institutions really function in the interest of the common good and that they do whatever is necessary to guarantee the Rule of Law in our country.

The organizations noted with regret that the Maltese public institutions had allowed a culture of impunity to develop in the years preceding the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, and that after her murder they “have not shown the appropriate determination in making sure that justice is achieved,” both by identifying and prosecuting the mastermind behind the journalist’s murder as well as by ensuring that all the allegations made by Daphne Caruana Galizia are thoroughly investigated.

The Civil Society Network, Occupy Justice, il-Kenniesa and l-Awturi reminded that after the 2013 general elections the spouse of a member of the Maltese Government was placed, and to date still serves, as a member of the Board of Governors of the FIAU, and is also directly involved in the investigations related to the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia. In the opinion of the four organizations, all this gives rise to a conflict of interest “which is unacceptable in an evolved democracy and discourages those who hold important knowledge from offering their collaboration to the Maltese public authorities in the fight against criminality.”