PAC | Frank Sammut’s lawyer to take Speaker’s ruling to Constitutional Court

Former MOBC chairman Frank Sammut's lawyer Joe Giglio expressed his intention to contest the Speaker's ruling before the Constitutional Court in order to safeguard his client's right to remain silent.

Last week, Speaker Anglu Farrugia ruled that former Enemalta chairman Tancred Tabone cannot shun the Public Accounts Committee hearings on the Enemalta oil scandal. Like Tabone, Sammut is facing criminal charges after allegedly receiving thousands of dollars in kickbacks from Dutch commodities firm Trafigura for oil consignments to Enemalta.

The ruling given on Tabone's request would also apply to Sammut's case.

Pointing out that the PAC is not a tribunal or court but its functions are clearly stipulated in the parliamentary guidelines, Farrugia explained that Tabone had a right not to answer but he should still be subject to questioning by PAC members.

Confirming a previous ruling, Farrugia said that Tabone "must answer the questions posed to him by the committee," adding that if Tabone felt that he would be incriminating himself by answering a particular question, he could refuse to answer.

The ruling also said that, where disagreement on what constitutes an incriminating question arose, this would be referred to the Speaker who would then rule on the matter. It is exactly this point which lawyer Joe Giglio wants to contest.

"While the PAC is bound by the Speaker's ruling, I am not. I am the one who decides what constitutes an incriminating question and not the Speaker," Giglio said, adding that the compilation of evidence against Sammut was still ongoing.

Giglio said his client had the right to remain silent, a right which was safeguarded by the Constitution and the European Convention of Human Rights.

"No one is above the Constitution or the European Convention, not even the Speaker," he said, adding that he had the right to contest the Speaker's ruling in his preferred choice of fora.

"I ask for the opportunity to contest the ruling and see what the court says, which at the end of the day is above the Speaker, a court which safeguards the Constitution."

Parliamentary secretary for justice Owen Bonnici said the right to remain silent was a fundamental right, but in light of the request to challenge the Speaker's ruling in court, the matter was "uncharted territory".

He pointed out that the Court never had the opportunity to decide on the issue being raised by Sammut's lawyer. He also pointed out that the status of parliament was born out of the Constitution and the Constitution existed because parliament existed and vice-versa.

The meeting has now been adjourned to 19 February with the PAC set to regulate itself if any developments take place.