Cabinet nominates Angelo Gafà for police commissioner

Angelo Gafà is on course to become the new police commissioner if Cabinet’s nomination is cleared by parliament’s public appointments committee.

Gafà was one of two names put forward to Cabinet by the Public Service Commission, which evaluated applications for the role of police commissioner.

Government said in a statement on Monday that after considering both nominations, the Cabinet decided to choose Gafà on the basis of him being the most qualified candidate for the job.

Gafà will now face a grilling at the hands of MPs. The parliamentary committee can technically stop the nomination but government has a majority. The grilling will be held in public.

The method of appointment was changed earlier this year. A call for applications was issued and candidates were interviewed by the Public Service Commission.

The commission then gave Cabinet a shortlist of two names.

Prior to the law being changed, the police commissioner was chosen solely by the prime minister with no call for applications and no grilling.

“The process is now more open and transparent,” the government said in the statement.