Government calls on 'immature' PN to respect institutions

The home affairs ministry condemned the "character assassination" carried out by the Nationalist Party on the four lieutenant colonels who were promoted this week.

While calling on the Opposition to respect the country's institutions, the ministry said that it would press ahead with offering opportunities to all "and not for the few."

The ministry said this in reaction to the Opposition's claim that the Armed Forces of Malta was being 'taken over' by the government following the promotion of four "Labour Party militants" to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

The government said that the PN's "attack" on the four majors who were promoted to lieutenant colonels "shows that the Opposition still thought on the lines of partisan politics" when dealing with the army.

"The attack exposes the Opposition's complete disregard for institutions with the intent to damage the country."

The home affairs ministry insisted that the promotions were legal and reminded Opposition MP Jason Azzopardi that the army is not regulated by the Public Service Commission.

It also pointed out that the promotion process involving the four officers did not differ from the way the former Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had appointed Paul Miruzzi on the selection board in the capacity of personal consultant.

Over the years, the four officers had advanced through the AFM ranks because they were qualified to do so, the ministry said.

"Does this attack confirm that the four persons were discriminated against by the previous administration because of their political leanings?" the home affairs ministry asked.

The promotions were based on the candidates' merits and the established criteria, the statement said, adding that the criteria were set by the Defence Board.

In reaction to Azzopardi's criticism that the promoted officers had not undergone the necessary training abroad, the ministry headed by Manuel Mallia said that under the previous administration high-ranking officials were promoted despite having no military experience abroad.

The ministry also pointed out that the injustices board had received a number of complaints on the methods used in the selection of officers for overseas operations under the previous administration.

The government also rebutted the Opposition's claims that not all promoted officers were granted the security clearance needed to handle classified information.

While underlining that "all applicants were granted the security clearance" by the Security Services, the ministry said that the Opposition was once again showing "political immaturity."

"The Opposition has not learnt a thing from its past mistakes," it said, noting that Jason Azzopardi contradicted himself when raising doubts over the security clearances while standing by the Opposition leader Simon Busuttil's vote of confidence in the Security Services.