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Muscat to Gonzi: call for vote of confidence, refund honoraria
Labour leader Muscat calls on Prime Minister to call for vote of confidence.
6 January 2012, 12:00am
Matthew Vella
Matthew Vella
1 min read
Joseph Muscat has called the Prime Minister to call for a vote of confidence in government.
Opposition leader Joseph Muscat has called on Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to convene parliament within the next week and call for a vote of confidence, as a Cabinet reshuffle announced today prompted government backbencher Franco Debono into withdrawing his support for the government.
Debono has called for the resignation of Gonzi and for the prime minster to call for new elections, after signalling his protest at the promotion of Gonzi's parliamentary secretaries to ministers.
"Our country needs stability," Muscat said. "In the past weeks we have seen pantomimes that have prompted an instability that is threatening our country's performance. The Prime Minister must convene parliament within the next week and call for a vote of confidence to see if he has the support of his MPs and cut the speculation."
"I expected Lawrence Gonzi to be clear about the failure of the debt targets he set in his budget, and announce the European Commission's reaction to his budgetary plans," Muscat said referring to a prospective EC evaluation of Budget 2012's economic growth forecasts.
Muscat also called on Gonzi to refund approximately €1 million in honoraria paid to his MPs over the past three years. "The Prime Minister's decision was not taken out of conviction but out of convenience. The Prime Minister was forced to take these decisions, and not because he believes in change."
Asked whether Gonzi's decision to reverse the unpopular salary increase had pulled the carpet from under Labour's feet, after having made salary cuts one of its key planks, Muscat said it was Gonzi "who treated the people like a carpet... and if he is re-elected he will take the MPs' honorarium back for his ministers."
Matthew Vella, a freelance journalist at MaltaToday, was formerly executive editor at Malt...
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Ghaziz Joseph, Issa mur il parlament u ghamel mozzjoni u itlob " VOT TA FIDUCJA " favur /kontra il Prim Ministru u tmexxija tieghu. Raguni hemm, ghax membru min naha tal gvern, iddikjara publikament li ma ghadx ghandu fiducja fil Prim Ministru. It is easy as A.B.C.Jien nissekondak.
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With their reduction in salary, the PM and the Ministers will now feel the pinch like all those who are outside the clique have been feeling for the past four years.
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Gonzi will certainly not refund of the monies grabbed as salaries/honoraria to the tune of Euro 500 a week, for this will eventually reflect his pension on retirement, for the reason that it would have been the highest amount earned during his period as MP. The period spent as MP does not come into the matter, as long as a 10-year eligibility period is reached. So, Gonzi and his gang will be getting two-thirds of Euro 500 as pension as well when they reach retirement. This should be a stimulus for more pressure from all sides for Gonzi to stop draining the Maltese coffers for his own pleasures.
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Gonzi jaghmel zewg U-Turns u Franco wahalulu.Elections are here.
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While I agree with Joseph Muscat I can't see anything happening unless Franco votes against the government. As usual the speaker will carry the day unless Franco abstains and is supported by disgruntled MPs like JPO, Mugliette, JP Farrugia etc.
