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Debono livid over ‘mere 5 minutes’ to speak in debate, considers not attending
Nationalist MP Franco Debono to lock horns with PM, threatening not to attend parliamentary session tomorrow after being told he had five minutes to speak on Labour motion.
3 November 2011, 12:00am
Karl Stagno-Navarra
Karl Stagno-Navarra
2 min read
The Nationalist MP Franco Debono has reacted with consternation at news that he is to be given five minutes during tomorrow's debate in parliament on a Labour motion for a vote of no confidence in Tranport Minister Austin Gatt over the shortcomings of public transport reform.
Debono, who has stated he will abstain on the motion, has told MaltaToday he considered the short amount to be “an insult”. Gatt, who is the subject of the motion itself, will have up to one hour to speak.
“You don’t have to be a wise man to know that in a speech you don’t even get to make an introduction in five minutes,” Debono said, adding that this latest development is pushing him to stay away from parliament. “I might as well not go to parliament, rather than abstain.”
Earlier this morning, Debono told MaltaToday that he offered Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi a way out of an embarrassing result when he abstains on a no-confidence motion against Austin Gatt tomorrow Friday.
He said he told Gonzi at the executive committee meeting on Monday evening, that the prime minister should immediately call for a vote of confidence in the government in the eventuality that he abstained on the Labour motion.
“I made it clear that he [Gonzi] would surely get the confidence vote because I made it amply clear that my issue concerns just one minister,” Debono said.
The Nationalist backbencher’s comments followed- up on his reaction to Gonzi’s warning on Wednesday evening, in which he told the annual general meeting of the Nationalist youth movement MZPN that he expected all MPs to vote against Labour’s motion if no agreement is reached on amendments to the motion.
Gonzi has meanwhile called on the Opposition to have Friday’s vote postponed, and agree to the setting up of a parliamentary committee to oversee the public transport reform.
Asked for his reaction, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat said the party’s response had been lukewarm. “If Austin goes, we postpone. Fair enough isn’t it?”
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@I Fenech
Obviously you are an apologist first class. Personnaly I don't give an owl's hoot which ever way Franco votes or abstains but the manouvering going on to save face when it is clear that gonzi is completely living in gagaland is shameful.
It is clear that Austin does not have the support of all gonziPN MPs, some are too affraid to stand up and be counted or have too many skeletons in their closet to speak.
As I said before no matter what happens on Friday which ever way the vote goes, even with the speaker's casting vote, gonziPN is a loser big time as gonzi himself has shown, when yesterday he BEGGED the opposition to help him out of the mess he created.
He should have accepted Austin's resignation and all this crap got over with. The difference between PL and gonziPN/PN is crystal clear, when resignations were in order PL acted accordingly and positively.
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@I Fenech
You should be greatfull that on the government's bench there are still some ppl that think and act in the interest of the people rather then their party. This augurs well for the future of the PN. Gonzi will surely be scrapped away after the next election and the party will need ppl that work in the interest of the country.
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Hold on Dr.Debono hold tight
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So cry-baby-look-at-me-I'm-here Franco Debono is peeved that he will get just 5 minutes to speak in Parliament. Well, that's more than enough for someone who plans to abstain. And in any case, anything this prima donna will have to say in parliament is unlikely to reflect the sentiments of his constituents who, come the next election, will vote him out off office and replace him by the very man he is trying to get at through this pathetic stunt.
We all know what you game is Dr (democracy) Debono, and your voters don't like it one bit. This parliamentary business has really gone to your head. hasn't it?
Maybe you're better off defending Labour candidates and asking the courts to have cases heard behind closed doors, just in case it causes Labour any embarrassment.
When in reality, you are the embarrassment to your party and your constituents.
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I really love it when parliament does what it should always do, that is, work to make the citizens' life better.
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"Asked for his reaction, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat said the party’s response had been lukewarm. “If Austin goes, we postpone. Fair enough isn’t it?”
Good one Dr Muscat!
Does Dr Gonzi think he can dictate and agree to play ball whenever it suits him? Where is the respect towards the Opposition? How short is his memory, has he already forgotten that he won the last election by an odd 1500 votes and this after making all the promises in the world. Where has his promise of 'the new way of doing politics' gone?
