Former ‘freebie’ minister Fenech takes government to task over ethics

Former finance minister Tonio Fenech has lambasted government for flouting the terms of the ministerial code of ethics - the same code that he himself had been roundly criticised for disregarding on numerous occasion throughout his 2004-2008 stint as Cabinet minister.

In a contribution to the Sunday Times, the 43-year-old Nationalist MP from Birkirkara argued that the Prime Minister's decision to waive the code of ethics in the case of ophthalmologist Franco Mercieca amount to a 'downgrade' of the same code.

"The code of ethics and adherence to it say a lot about a government's values and principles and about the sort and level of conduct a Cabinet member is committed to," Fenech wrote.

"Muscat has downgraded the present code of ethics to merely a set of inconvenient rules that one should try and bypass under some excuse or another rather than understand the high moral ground it represents and ensure that every member would seek to apply consistently."

Ironically, much the same criticism was levelled at the former Finance Minister himself on at least three occasions.

The first and most emblematic of these remains his decision to accept an invitation by casino operator George Fenech and leading entrepreneur Joe Gasan to watch his favourite football team Arsenal play in the Champion's League in Spain (at a time when Fenech had just presented a series of amendments to the Lotteries and Gamings Act, and the tender for the Dragonara Casino was being adjudicated).

Later, allegations emerged that Fenech had accepted free renovation work on his private home by Montebello Brothers - a construction and development firm more associated with large-scale projects - as a "favour".

Montebello Brothers were at the time trying to sell the newly acquired Jerma Palace hotel to George Fenech and Joe Gasan: the same entrepreneurs from whom Fenech had already accepted 'gifts' in direct violation of the code of ethics.

Lastly, during the election it emerged that Fenech had accepted a traditional Maltese clock as a gift, from the sister-in-law of George Farrugia - the man at the heart of the oil procurement corruption scandal that had erupted a few days earlier.

Fenech argued that the clock was homemade and worthless, and was given to him only as a token of 'admiration'.

For the record, the code specifies that: "no Minister should accept gifts or services such as might be deemed to create an obligation, real or imaginary. The same rule applies to the spouse of a Minister and to his minor children." (Section 58)

"Ministers occupy a position that makes them more than ordinarily open to undue pressures from persons who would like the Minister to use his position to gain some undue advantage for themselves. Ministers are duty bound to totally and immediately reject any attempt of this kind, but when the attempt is accompanied by the offer of some gift, whatever its value, the Minister should also report this to the Prime Minister without delay." (Section 59).

The same code also specifies that when travelling, Ministers should inform the Prime Minister in writing beforehand, and submit a report of their trip upon their return.