Moviment Graffitti notes with concern and regret that the conclusions and recommendations of the board of inquiry on the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia are being undermined, as the Government pays lip service while deflecting its responsibility to address their implications.

The inquiry found abundant evidence of the deep, intimate, and inappropriate ties between the highest levels of public administration and big business. 

These ties led to the grave actions committed by elements of the State, centrally orchestrated from the Office of the Prime Minister, to shackle and silence Daphne Caruana Galizia because her journalism was a threat to the powerful financial interests arising from the incestuous marriage between politics and business.

Perhaps most pertinent at this point in time is the Ministry for Justice’s responsibility to guarantee rule of law by ensuring that the long arm of justice reaches all those who break the law, whoever they are, whatever their political and economic power. 

The board of inquiry concluded that the manifest reality revealed throughout the proceedings is that, for the State, the interests of private business take precedence over the public good. 

Yet the Minister for Justice whose remit it is to ensure that this culture of impunity is eradicated has been shown to have the closest of ties with the businessman accused of being at the very centre of this nexus of political-economic interests, to the point of being the alleged mastermind of the assassination. 

The same Minister for Justice claims to have a firm conviction that he has always acted with integrity, despite the board of inquiry’s conclusion that no member of that Parliamentary Group acted with integrity in choosing to defend the indefensible actions of Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri. 

It is inconceivable that a State found to have facilitated an assassination through the many and widespread instances of dereliction of responsibility that led to private interests being given a higher priority than the public good can hope to fix the situation through a Minister whose deep, intimate, and inappropriate relationship to those same private interests is documented, public, and pathetic. 

Minister Edward Zammit Lewis’s “firm conviction” of his own integrity is irrelevant. We have seen enough assurances, beliefs, and convictions unraveling under the weight of evidence to the contrary over the last years. 

If we continue to trust evidently compromised individuals’ reassurances of their own integrity, we will all be a Ġaħan. 

We remember then-Minister for Tourism’s promise in Parliament that no high-rise will be built in the North Harbour Area until a masterplan is concluded – which promise lies in the dust of other big business interests’ monuments to impunity.

This is no time for business as usual, and the extensive conclusions and recommendations laid out by the board of inquiry need to be acted on with due urgency and dedication. 

There are many structural improvements to be made, but Yorgen Fenech’s bosom buddy should not be the one making them.

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Ir-rispons tal-Istat għall-inkjesta pubblika għandu jmur lil hinn minn sempliċiment diskors

Moviment Graffitti jinnota bi tħassib u dispjaċir li l-konklużjonijiet u r-rakkomandazzjinijiet tal-Bord ta’ inkjesta dwar il-qtil ta’ Daphe Caruana Galizia qed jiġu imminati, hekk kif il-Gvern qiegħed biss jitkellem dwarhom waqt li jonqos mir-responsabbilta’ tiegħu li jindirizza l-implikazzjonijiet tagħhom.

L-inkjesta sabet evidenza abbundanti tar-rabtiet profondi, intimi u mhux xierqa bejn l-ogħla livelli ta’ amministrazzjoni pubblika u n-negozju kbir.

Dawn ir-rabtiet wasslu għall-azzjonijiet gravi mwettqa minn elementi tal-Istat, orkestrati ċentralment mill-Uffiċju tal-Prim Ministru biex iwaqqfu u jsikktu lil Daphne Caruana Galizia minħabba li l-ġurnaliżmu tagħha kien ta’ theddida għall-interessi finanzjarji qawwija li jirriżultaw miż-żwieġ inċestuż bejn il-politika u n-negozju.

Forsi l-iktar ħaġa pertinenti f’dan il-mument hija r-responsabbilta’ tal-Ministeru għall-Ġustizzja li jiggarantixxi s-saltna tad-dritt billi jiżgura li l-id tal-ġustizzja tilħaq lil dawk kollha li jiksru l-liġi, huma min huma u jkun xi jkun il-poter politiku u ekonomiku tagħhom.

Il-Bord tal-inkjesta ikkonkluda li r-realta’ manifesta żvelata matul il-proċeduri hija li, għall-Istat, l-interessi tan-negozju privat jieħdu preċedenza fuq il-ġid komuni.

Madankollu, il-Ministru għall-Ġustizzja, li l-mandat tiegħu hu li jiżgura li din il-kultura ta’ impunita’ tinqered, intwera li għandu l-eqreb rabtiet man-negozjant akkużat li kien fiċ-ċentru ta’ din ir-rabta ta’ interessi politiċi-ekonomiċi, sal-punt li kien l-allegat moħħ wara l-qtil ta’ Daphne Caruana Galizia.

l-istess Ministru għall-Ġustizzja jsostni li għandu konvinzjoni soda li hu dejjem aġixxa b’integrita’, minkejja l-konklużjoni tal-Bord li l-ebda membru ta’ dak il-Grupp Parlamentari ma aġixxa b’integrita’ fl-għażla li jiddefendi l-azzjonijiet indifendibbli ta’ Konrad Mizzi u Keith Schembri. 

Huwa inkonċepibbli li Stat li nstab li iffaċilita l-qtil ta’ ġurnalista permezz il-ħafna każijiet ta’ nuqqas ta’ responsabbilta’ li wasslu biex l-interessi privati jingħataw prijorita’ ogħla mill-ġid pubbliku jista’ jittama li jirranġa s-sitwazzjoni b’Ministru li r-relazzjoni profonda, intima u mhux xierqa tiegħu ma’ dawk l-istess interessi privati hija dokumentata, pubblika, u patetika.

Il-konvinzjoni soda tal-Ministru Edward Zammit Lewis dwar l-integrita’ tiegħu stess hi irrilevanti. Rajna biżżejjed assigurazzjonijiet, twemmin u kundanni jiżżarmaw taħt il-piż tal-provi kuntrarji matul l-aħħar snin.

Jekk inkomplu nafdaw ir-riassigurazzjonijiet tal-integrita’ tagħhom stess ta’ individwi li huma kompromessi b’mod evidenti, ilkoll kemm aħna nkunu Ġaħan.

Niftakru l-wegħda tal-Ministru tat-Turiżmu ta’ dak iż-żmieni fil-Parlament li l-ebda torri mhu se jinbena fir-Reġjun tal-Port tan-Naħa ta’ Fuq sakemm ma jiġix konkluż Masterplan – liema wegħda tinsab fit-trab ta’ monumenti oħra għall-impunita’ tal-interessi tan-negozju kbir.

Dan mhu l-ebda żmien biex l-affarijiet jibqgħu kif kienu, u l-konklużjonijiet u r-rakkomandazzjonijiet estensivi stabbiliti mill-Bord għandhom jiġu segwiti b’urġenza u dedikazzjoni xierqa.

Hemm ħafna titjib strutturali xi jsir, imma l-ħabib tal-qalb ta’ Yorgen Fenech m’għandux ikun dak li qed jagħmilhom.