Marlene Farrugia plays down PD-PN distinction in court

Partit Demokratiku (PD) leader, and MP, Marlene Farrugia, has played down the assertion that PD was a third party in the House of Representatives, before the Constitutional Court this evening.

The leader of the fledgling Orange party was testifying in Constitutional proceedings filed by the Labour Party (PL) against the Electoral Commission, in which Labour is contesting the Commission's decision to award two additional seats to the opposition Nationalist Party (PN).

The extra seats were allocated to the PN by the Electoral Commission after a Constitutional mechanism, intended to balance out a two-party parliament was triggered by the result.

In a sitting earlier this week, the PL had asked for the inclusion of the PD as a party to the case.

Amongst the witnesses summoned by the PL's lawyer Pawlu Lia to testify before the Constitutional Court today was MP Marlene Farrugia, who had set up the PD after resigning from the Labour Party whilst in government.

The PD candidates ran on the PN ticket.

Lia asked Farrugia about the agreement which set up Forza Nazzjonali, the coalition between the PN and PD.

The agreement was signed on April 28th , this year, she said.

“Are you today, still a member of the PN?” Lia asked.

“I paid my lifetime membership in 1998, but today I am a PN MP.”

Farrugia said that as far as she was aware, she was still a paid-up member of the PN. She had also been a member of the PL, she said.

“When I had been elected on the PL ticket I was interested to see that the movement's manifesto was implemented, but the most important pillar of the manifesto – good governance – was clearly lacking. This not only because of the number of scandals, but also because two prominent PL exponents opened companies in Panama...” Farrugia continued before being interrupted.

Lia asked if she had set up a political party and when.

“It was officially set up last October. The party is the Partit Demokratiku, it still exists to today.”

Asked what the intention behind the setting up of the party was, Farrugia said the founders had felt that “the opposition should unite to form a united alternative that could form a government.”

“You wanted to exploit the possibility of pooling the first preference votes of both parties, correct?” Lia asked.

“Yes, but not only,” Farrugia replied.

Asked to explain the distinction between the “tal-orangjo” designation for PD candidates the ballot, she said it was a choice up to the candidates.

“It was so the voters would be able to know that we were on the Nationalist ballot.”

“We chose the background colour, but it doesn't mean anything... just like Joseph Muscat likes to wear a blue tie, it doesn't mean that he is a PN supporter,” Farrugia said, to laughter from the public benches.

“Nobody interfered, just like I didn't impose the blue background on the PN candidates, they didn't impose the orange background on us. We left it open to all our candidates to decide. Why not?”

Who had the last word? Lia asked.

“There were no disagreements,” replied Farrugia.

Lia asked her about her declarations at the counting hall. “The intention...” she began.

“I'm not asking about the intention, I asked about the declaration,” Lia interrupted her.

“When people voted, although I was on the PN sheet, they voted for a candidate who endorsed PD values, who was on the PN ticket with the PN logo near her name… there were other parties they could have voted for.”

In parliament she will be under the PN whip, just as she had been in the previous legislature, she said, as the outgoing Leader of the Opposition, Simon Busuttil, who was made a party to the case, looked on.

Farrugia's claim to be a lifelong member of the PN appeared to have been contradicted by the earlier testimony of PN Secretary General Rosette Thake, who when asked whether Farrugia was still a member of the party, had said “She was in the past but is no longer.” Farrugia hadn't been a member during the election, Thake had told the court, after which Lia had asked whether she was aware that the PN statute only allowed paid up members of the party to contest under its banner.

Lawyer Patrick Valentino followed the proceedings as on behalf of the PD, while not a party to the case. Prof. Ian Refalo is representing the Electoral Commission in the case.