Debono in privilege complaint against online comments
MP Franco Debono files a breach of privilege complaint against comments by readers published on Times online portal.
3 October 2012, 12:00am
Jurgen Balzan
Jurgen Balzan
2 min read
MP Franco Debono moved the second breach of privilege complaint in as many days.
Nationalist MP Franco Debono has tabled a second breach of privilege motion in as many days, after saying that he felt offended by comments posted on the Times online website by three readers.
While insisting that he was not complaining about the report on the news website itself, Debono said he was complaining and asking for the Speaker of the House to rule over the comments posted by three persons.
Yesterday, Debono raised a breach of privilege campaign over a television programme on TVM, presented by former PN executive president Piere Portelli, on which lawyer and Times columnist Andrew Borg Cardona Breach of privilege passed comments the MP claimed where offensive.
Debono asked Speaker Michael Frendo to pass a ruling over a comment by Philip Hili, a reader who "has been persecuting" Debono for years. The comment in question described Debono as a "blackmailer."
"I have a right and duty to take up positions I have taken in the past. I swore my loyalty towards the Constitution and the Republic. I never blackmailed anyone, but I was the victim of a death threat," Debono said.
The Ghaxaq MP, who has been banned from contesting elections with the PN after voting in favour of a Labour motion in Parliament, yesterday revealed that he was the recipient of death threats which he reported to the police last Saturday.
Debono added that the police traced down the person behind the threats but that he had decided "to forgive the person".
"Calling me a blackmailer is unacceptable, it is a criminal offence. I only exercised my rights according to the rights granted to MPs by the Standing Orders to raise a breach of privilege against PBS, Pierre Portelli and Andrew Borg Cardona," the MP added.
The other comments Debono cited were posted by Michael Borg who accused Debono of "setting-up" the death threat story and another comment which cast doubt on the real reasons why Debono forgave the person behind the threat.
The Speaker said he will give the ruling in the coming days.
Jurgen Balzan was a MaltaToday reported from 2011 to 2017.
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@ KZD Of course that is exactly what I maintained and glad you agree. Criticism is one thing and can be revoked by counter criticism, via blogs, as Franco and others do. Insults and lies are something completely different. Legal action might be taken in such instances. You should learn the difference.
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Consiglio, you are completely off the mark. That is called bartering or bargaining or negotiation but not blackmailing which has a totally different meaning and concerns bad or criminal activity. Everyone uses his bargaining chips as best as possible. That is not blackmail. That is a purely democratic process used world wide.
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Consiglio, you are completely off the mark. That is called bartering or bargaining or negotiation but not blackmailing which has a totally different meaning and concerns bad or criminal activity. Everyone uses his bargaining chips as best as possible. That is not blackmail. That is a purely democratic process used world wide.
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Franco Debono has to face facts. There are some people who do not agree with him and they are entitled to voice their opinion. The blade cuts both ways and as a smart lawyer, Franco Debono should know that. If you cannot take the heat, get out of the kitchen. Franco Debono is a public figure and he knows he is subject to criticism like any other politician is. It goes with the territory. Remember he put himself in the limelight. Being famous has a price to pay.
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Whats goes around comes around Dottore !!
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@ Better future
Anyone is entitled to his opinion not only FD. He expects to critise just about anything and offend everyone under the sky but then disapproves people who dare make a comment about his own critism. This is absurd to say the very least. Is this not dictatorship, he even went as far as calling the highest person in authority a liar, and then you expect people to abide by his insults?
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Debono is got something against democracy now?
And apart from that everyone knows Debono is a blackmailer, we didn't need to read it off an online comment.
Debono is famous for his "if you do this or don't do this or that then I will do this or not do that..." attitude. Its called blackmailing.
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Like everybody else if Franco feels slighted by other people's commentshe has the right to redress what is levied against him, just like you guys fenea and Algan have the same right if the editor of MT post other people's comments that you feel are defamatory, but then you write under an username so you lose that right.One must chose his words when commenting, not everybody has the protection a certain bloger seems to have that apparently spirals up to the highest of authorities so much so that although involved in a hit and run accident barely heard of on the media.
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@fenea
Kulħaddjista' jesprimi l'opinjoni tiegħu, pero basta wieħed ikun qed jgħid il-verita'. U mid-dehra il-verita' tweġġa' ħafna nies li għandhom x'jitilfu taħt dan il-gvern! Jekk hemm xi ħadd li jaħseb li Dr. Franco Debono qed jigdeb, jagħmillu libel! Fuq kollox il-klikka ta' GONZIDCGPN, jafu x'għandhom jagħmlu, għax jiddilettaw ħafna bil-libelli!Id-differenza hija ċara, il-prim ministru intrabat mas-siħħu tal-poter u ma jridx iwarrab! Kienu jgħidu għall-Labour tal-80s, u jien kont nemminhom dak iż-żmien!Iżda issa qed jagħmlu ħafna agħar, u il-kredenzjali tad-demokrazija kissirtuhom kollha! Sew jagħmel Franco, la tajtuh l-ġenb, jaqlalkom kemm jiflah, għax fuq kollox bħal ma' qed tgħidu inthom li l-karriera politika tiegħu kissirtuhielu, allura m'għandux x'jitlef aktar u jkolmpli jikxef il-ħmieġ!
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fenea, Franco does not blurt out whatever he wants indiscriminately. Franco speaks the truth. If anyone is offended by what he says, and considers his sayings lies, the offended party may always seek recourse at court. Exactly what Franco is doing, considering he is being lied about.
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FD is a man who truly believes in freedom of expression as long as it is him who is making the expressions. What a fake
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What - no comments here - are you all scared he may have another go.
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mela inti biss tista tghid li trid habib. issa jkollok toqghod ghal kritika jekk inti demokratiku.
