[WATCH] Caruana Galizia murder ‘debate’ turns into Joseph Muscat’s parliamentary farewell

It started with Joseph Muscat giving an overview of developments in the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder case but the parliamentary debate ended up being a farewell monologue

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat (File photo)
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat (File photo)

Joseph Muscat is undecided whether he will remain an MP after resigning in January, Parliament heard as a ‘debate’ on Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder investigation became a farewell monologue.

The Prime Minister had proposed that Parliament’s agenda be suspended for the next two days so that MPs could debate the Caruana Galizia murder.

Government MPs effectively sat in Parliament on their own after the Nationalist Party MPs earlier walked out in protest.

Muscat started and ended today’s ‘debate’ with an hour-long speech that started with a point-by-point blow of the Caruana Galizia murder investigation and finished with the Prime Minister letting his tongue loose on advice to his successor on what constitutional changes the country should make.

It was a bizarre parliamentary farewell speech by Muscat who reminisced how he started off in politics by helping Evarist Bartolo sorting out newspapers and advised his successor not to be cocky when answering questions about the future.

On the Caruana Galizia murder, Muscat said that the pardon granted to middleman Melvin Theuma (the prime minister did not refer to him by man) was conditional on the fact that he testify in the Caruana Galizia murder case, and “three other serious cases”.

He said that Theuma was arrested on 14 November in a joint raid by the police and Europol in relation to an anti-money laundering operation.

Muscat reiterated that he refused to give Theuma a blank cheque until his information was corroborated by the police.

The Prime Minister said that Yorgen Fenech (he did not mention him by name) had also twice asked for a pardon but each time this was refused on recommendation of the police and the Attorney General.

Muscat insisted that he wanted the Caruana Galizia murder to be solved on his watch but cautioned that the investigation was not yet over.

“There have been other high profile murders in this country that were never solved and in this case, we not only have the people who killed her but also a person who allegedly was the mastermind,” he said.

Muscat then went on to speak about the current political crisis, gloating that he still enjoyed the trust of the majority of the people.

“This is a period of trial without precedent… in every Cabinet and parliamentary group meeting I felt a strong sense of companionship where we discussed and decided matters together,” Muscat said.

The Prime Minister then went on to describe today as “the first day of the rest of my life”.

He then said that he had not yet made up his mind whether to remain an MP after resigning from prime minister in January but promised his successor of unconditional loyalty as a backbencher.

“This party won a majority and still has a majority and this is not tied to Joseph Muscat but with the idea of a movement. I will be there to help anyone who comes after me, to the best of my abilities… This was a beautiful adventure that I learnt a lot from,” Muscat concluded his last speech in parliament as prime minister.