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NAO report | ‘Austin Gatt is now a private person’ – Fenech Adami on former minister’s silence
‘Now that he’s a private person, I cannot force Austin Gatt to answer media questions’, says PN deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami.
21 July 2013, 12:00am
Miriam Dalli
Miriam Dalli
2 min read
PN deputy leader for party affairs Beppe Fenech Adami
Following the publication of the now infamous National Audit Office report on the fuel procurement by Enemalta between 2008 and mid-2011, former Nationalist minister Austin Gatt has refused to answer media questions.
Until early 2010, Enemalta fell under the ministerial responsibility of Gatt.
But according to PN deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami, he "cannot force" Austin Gatt to speak to the press.
"Now that he's a private person, I cannot force Austin Gatt to answer journalists' questions," Fenech Adami said, insisting he could not speak on Gatt's behalf as to why he was keeping quiet.
"What is certain is that while he was still a minister he answered several questions, as was his duty, which journalists had. But today he is no longer a member of parliament."
Fenech Adami insisted the PN had a zero-tolerance policy on corruption and the police should investigate "all allegations" that surface.
"The police must investigate all cases and persons found involved must answer to their actions."
Speaking on Radio 101 together with PN deputy leader for parliamentary affairs Mario de Marco, Fenech Adami told newsbook journalist Josianne Camilleri the Nationalist administration had immediately acted when allegations of oil purchasing kickbacks emerged in the press.
"It was Lawrence Gonzi who demanded that all necessary steps are taken and in fact a number of persons were charged in court," Fenech Adami said, in a reaction to the NAO report.
He insisted the PN's track record was testimony to the previous administration's fight against corruption through the setting up of the Ombudsman, the public accounts committee and the National Office Audit among others.
However, Fenech Adami also accused Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of "politicising" the damning NAO report. Since its publishing, Muscat repeatedly said he was still waiting for the Nationalist opposition to "justify the amateurish way" by which the fuel procurement committee operated.
"Joseph Muscat is wrong in politicising the report... even because the report itself acknowledges that corrective measures were taken."
The report indeed acknowledges that "real and tangible progress was registered from mid-2011 onwards". But before that, serious shortcomings were flagged including the lack of minutes of meetings which decided on the adjudicating of tenders and the option to go for bids which were not necessarily the most preferred option.
Miriam Dalli joined MaltaToday.com.mt in 2010 becoming assistant editor f...
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No you cannot, just like your dear old father can't because he is no longer leader of the opposition, prime minister, president of the republic, bla bla bla bla. What goes round comes around, no matter what and how long you try to hide it. Very disappointing coming from someone who preaches values and democracy. Like father, like son insomma.
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Typical, and you expect us to believe the party changed! Good one
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Commit a crime while in politics and expect to get away with when you leave? That's a good one.
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Qed nisthajjel il-PN tal-llum qisu l-MLP tan-1981. Qisu m'hemmx rieda li jergghu jiggvernaw.
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Dear Beppe, I just want to refer you to former Israeli Prime Minister,Ehud Olmert and former French President Jacque Schirach, anomg other big-heads. Both were arraigned in court for illegalities during their time in office. So, olease, stop trying to play the idiot.
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Dan xqieghed jahsibna? Boloh? Allura dawk il kriminali tal gwerra li rnexxilom jaharbu ghalfejn ipprocessawhom snin wara meta qabduhom? Dawk saru cittadini komuni wara il gwerra. Hallina Beppe.Kullhadd irid ihallas ta ghemilu jekk ikun naqas, jghaddu kemm jghaddu snin.
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Beppe.....You need to hear yourselves talking....What hipocracy.Not only that you and those around you haven't woken up from your electoral nightmare but you continue to live in cuckoo land. The PN needs to get real !!We deserve a better opposition !!
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Beppe.....You need to hear yourselves talking....What hipocracy.Not only that you and those around you haven't woken up from your electoral nightmare but you continue to live in cuckoo land. The PN needs to get real !!We deserve a better opposition !!
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Beppe.....You need to hear yourselves talking....What hipocracy.Not only that you and those around you haven't woken up from your electoral nightmare but you continue to live in cuckoo land. The PN needs to get real !!We deserve a better opposition !!
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Beppe.....You need to hear yourselves talking....What hipocracy.Not only that you and those around you haven't woken up from your electoral nightmare but you continue to live in cuckoo land. The PN needs to get real !!We deserve a better opposition !!
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X'kull wahda ukoll! Allura jekk Gatt hu private person ghalfejn Beppe qed jaqbez ghalih? Mela qed tahsibna li ghadna cwiec bhal Tonio? We can read between the lines! U qed taqbez ghalih ghaliex id-demm qatt ma isir semm; mhux hekk Dr Adami? Intom individwali intom responsabli daqs Gatt: xejn anqas u xejn izjed!
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X'kull wahda ukoll! Allura jekk Gatt hu private person ghalfejn Beppe qed jaqbez ghalih? Mela qed tahsibna li ghadna cwiec bhal Tonio? We can read between the lines! U qed taqbez ghalih ghaliex id-demm qatt ma isir semm; mhux hekk Dr Adami? Intom individwali intom responsabli daqs Gatt: xejn anqas u xejn izjed!
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IPOKRITI. Kulħadd għandu jinżamm kontabbli ta' għemilu mhux għax issa m'għadux fil-Parlamnet jiskarta.
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maybe if cousin bondi asks him some media questions,will he oblige and reply?he could always tell that he came here to do pipi!!!!
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What a mess is the PN in? Who is this Fenech Adami and his party, who still think that he can fool the the people. So the son of an Emeritus thinks that while the people were paying from their ears, a ring within the PN Government could dispose of millions on a piece of paper coolly, and just because they were booted out, no explanation is necessary. This Emeritus son, Christian conscience is not even touched considering that at the same time there was less money for the social services as poverty continued to rear its head during the Gonzi administration. BUT, DEAR EMERITUS SON, THE NOOSE AROUND THE PN`S INNER RING IS TIGHTENING, AS YOU AND YOUR MATES ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY IRRELEVANT
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Mela la Austin Gatt ma għadux membru parlamentari dan ifisser li ma għadx għandu immunita' parlamentari u jistgħu jittieħdu passi kriminali kontrieħ jekk ikun hemm provi li dan kien imdaħħal fil-korruzzjoni fix-xiri taz-zejt jew xi korruzzjoni oħra. La issa sar persuna komuni, ma hemmx bzonn li jkun zvestit mil-immunita jew il-permess tal-parlament biex ikunu jistgħu jittieħdu passi fil-konfront tiegħu.
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What right has a party over an ex-minister who some say was the cause of an electoral defeat?
Can anyone from the PN control what ex-PN MP Franco Debono says or does?
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
Can anyone from a company phone me up on work which I did some years ago? No!
Just stop this which hunting stop the talking and do the walking . Labour is supposed to hit the ground running but it seems that someone lost the road map. Good governance does not come with witch hunts on past ministers who "do the best of their abilities in the circumstances”.
What would we do with a party taking the political responsibility? Just the same we took when Joseph said ‘sorry’ of the misdeeds of the past Labour governments.
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Good job PN this is how the PL wants you to keep on managing the party. Next May in the EU elections the landslide victory will be bigger for the PL if you continue in this path.
You should stop trying to defend these people that did enormous mistakes! If a normal citizen is caught that he did something wrong after 10 years of the crime he will end up in jail so that is what we want to happen! These people should be clearly prosecuted and you should clean your disgraceful party Mr. Fenech Adami.
Your father did a lot for the PN,you are digging your own graveyard!
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Grow up BFA. Why are you defending the EX Minister if he is no longer within the PN. Can't Austin Gatt defend himself? Oh yes he can. The only thing he cannot do is deny that he "forgot" to list his foreign savings account of a few thousand euros in a Swiss bank which is a crime in itself. Also if there is any doubt that there were serious discrepancies in the Oil Procurement investigation Joseph Muscat has every right to bring those responsible to justice. These are crimes against the State and must be thoroughly investigated and punish those that are found responsible, ex ministers or not. Maybe Joseph Muscat is rushing things a bit but that is only because the PN has been asleep for the last 22 years.
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Shame on you Beppe. Passing such comments when defending the indefensible should see you booted out of politics. If in your books AG is still untouchable for all the corrupt practices which happened under his tenure of office, you or your cohorts should be ready to face the music in his stead. No more excuses and hiding behind the legal jargon. The people deserve a clean opposition party and not one full of shady characters. The institutions that you mentioned, created by the PN as a smokescreen for their wrongdoings, were toothless, spineless and ineffective. Go on, do the honourable thing, resign from politics.
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Dont tell us we are going to give Austin Gatt a presidential pardon now that he is no longer a minister, when a minister decides to step down does he relinquish all his responsibilities of his past post?
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If AG is a private person then why let Fenech Adami head a mass meeting? Carry on with hypocrisy and you won't see government for a very long time!
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The "new" PN leadership - il-bidla li halliet kollox kif kien! Poor Malta! Some people NEVER learn!
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Let's for a moment forget the EneMalta Scandal of the century and go back to the privization of the telephone to Go PLC and the Qawra land. Your Buddy Wistinu more than once said that this land was not part of the contract and hence it still belongs to the Mal;ta Govenment. As a lawyer by trade he should know how a contract should be drawn up. Notwithstanding his statements this labd was claimed and in fact it came to belong to Go Plc so much so that to have it back the Malta Government had to give Go Plc a number of buildings and this was gone in a huss hss way. All this happened while Austin Gatt was still a senior Minister in the Gonzi P.N. Government. Every one knows that the Maltese people didn't hear a wimper of at least 'Sorry I made a mistake' DO you have any comments about this dear Beppe?
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My question is: Is there still anyone out there, who does not believe that GonziPN's administration, and their trusted hangers on scattered everywhere within the Public Sector, were not as corrupt to the core as much as facts are now revealing?
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Beppe.Not even an emeritus is a private person or anyone especially who occupied any government position.Those who think so are mistaken.
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Beppe.Not even an emeritus is a private person or anyone especially who occupied any government position.Those who think so are mistaken.
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Yes he might e a private person now but this does not excuse him if whilst being a public figure he might have been responsible for all the decisions he took. If he think like you, a politician can turn Malta upside down and resign after 5 years citing that he us a private person. In Maltse, HALLINA BEPPE FENECH ADAMI.
Rita Pizzuto •
It goes without saying that Austin still has a hold on the PN. That is why they give him all this protection. Shame on them! They have a chance to come clean but they won'. How can they ever clean and make the sweeping changes needed to resurface?
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Ara Mintoff ma kienx sar 'private person' ghan-nazzjonalisti ghax baghqu jaqlawlu b'li ghandu u li ma ghandux sa mewtu ( jekk mhux wara ukoll ) avolja kien ilu snin li irrezenja minn kariga publika.
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Imnalla diehla l-ligi tal-preskrizzjoni u tal-whistleblower ghax kieku kulhadd jibqa b'li ha. Jigifieri Austin qed jahseb li helisha u mhux taht il-ligi? kieku lanqas l-ex dittaturi jmisshom ma jressqu l-qorti allura ghax ikunu rtiraw."Coraggio fuggiamo!" Meta jibda jeghreq il-vapur,l-ewwel li jaqbzu l-grieden!
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Imnalla diehla l-ligi tal-preskrizzjoni u tal-whistleblower ghax kieku kulhadd jibqa b'li ha. Jigifieri Austin qed jahseb li helisha u mhux taht il-ligi? kieku lanqas l-ex dittaturi jmisshom ma jressqu l-qorti allura ghax ikunu rtiraw."Coraggio fuggiamo!" Meta jibda jeghreq il-vapur,l-ewwel li jaqbzu l-grieden!
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Imnalla diehla l-ligi tal-preskrizzjoni u tal-whistleblower ghax kieku kulhadd jibqa b'li ha. Jigifieri Austin qed jahseb li helisha u mhux taht il-ligi? kieku lanqas l-ex dittaturi jmisshom ma jressqu l-qorti allura ghax ikunu rtiraw."Coraggio fuggiamo!" Meta jibda jeghreq il-vapur,l-ewwel li jaqbzu l-grieden!
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hmmm!! so has he donated all his benefits as MP to the community ?
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Ara kif jghidu t-taljani.....ma va fa' n****.
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Imnalla diehla l-ligi tal-preskrizzjoni u tal-whistleblower ghax kieku kulhadd jibqa b'li ha. Jigifieri Austin qed jahseb li helisha u mhux taht il-ligi? kieku lanqas l-ex dittaturi jmisshom ma jressqu l-qorti allura ghax ikunu rtiraw."Coraggio fuggiamo!" Meta jibda jeghreq il-vapur,l-ewwel li jaqbzu l-grieden!
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Imnalla diehla l-ligi tal-preskrizzjoni u tal-whistleblower ghax kieku kulhadd jibqa b'li ha. Jigifieri Austin qed jahseb li helisha u mhux taht il-ligi? kieku lanqas l-ex dittaturi jmisshom ma jressqu l-qorti allura ghax ikunu rtiraw."Coraggio fuggiamo!" Meta jibda jeghreq il-vapur,l-ewwel li jaqbzu l-grieden!
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X`Tippredendi li Dr.Muscat il Priministru ma jitkellimx ? L-anqas ghandkom wickhom imcappas ..... . ! Mela issa ghax jien penzjonant u ghamilt xi haga hazina meta kont nahdem hadd ma ghandu ikellimni fuqa ghax ma ghadnix nahdem , hux hekk ? U ghaliex ma jdahhalx il pulitika fija ? mela jekk saru il buzulotti dak in -nhar mhux fil pulitika saru ? Shame .
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Ara veru m'hawnx kelma biex tiddeskrivi l-ipokrezija tal-Vici Kapijiet ta'GonziPN. Insew dawn iz-zewg ipokriti lill- Ex Ministru Laburista Lorry Sant, li anke wara mewtu baqghu jtambru fuqu. GonziPN kollu huwa hati ghat tmexxija hazina tal-Enemalta u tal-flus zejda li nsterqu lill-poplu Malti u l-ebda irtirar mix-xena politika ma hu sejjer jiskolpa dawn il-hnizrijiet.
Rita Pizzuto •
When he was a minister he always answered the journalists' questions as was his duty, Fenech Adami said referring to his former (and I assume still is, his team-mate). I am sure that Malta Today would not agree to that. So Beppe FA would not talk about Winston. It reminds one of the three monkeys: no hear, no see no talk. In Maltese an apt proverb would be, Kappell ma jmejjilx iehor!!!! But then these people find it so easy to blame others in the other political camp that decades ago made what they term as unpardonable mistakes. So what' good for the goose is not good for the gander when it comes to the PN.
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'The PN had a zero tolerance policy on corruption' - LOL! Pull the other one, mate !
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He is an Ex Minister trusted with the Nation's money, he is a nationalist, he is a private person, whatever he is he must answer for his misdeeds. No one is above the LAW and neither is Wistinu, or any other human being dead or alive. Do you want to mean that being a politicians one can do what the hell he/she likes? making a mess of a Nation and all is forgiven after making enough assets and then he /she retires, then all is well? If this is so then it should apply for every single citizen not only in Malta but the whole wide world. In my opinion a politician should answer even after he/she is dead. Their assets should be taken over by the nations coffers if it is found prove of mismanagement and mishandling, including past, present presidents, Prime ministers, ministers and all politicians.
Wake up to reality, even third world countries have imprisoned those who were corrupt, let alone the country of "Flimkien Kollox Possible' and "Progressivi u Moderati"
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Up to recently, the PN found it ridiculous that the PL has two deputy leaders. This has now been accepted. So one must take PN statements with a pinch of salt. What is ridiculous at a certain time, may be a good idea later. Besides, the two deputy leaders' surnames remind one too much of the past. Will the PN never change?
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Sewwa jajt il Malti skont iz Zokk il Fergha Like Father Like Son
Shame on you
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Not being a MP any more gives Austin and Gonzi the right not to answer for their past actions if found to be wrong , is that what this moron wants us to believe? Don't worry if need be even his father would have to answer if misdeeds were made during his Premiershi are found.
