Karol Aquilina considers calling urgent meeting of PN administrative council
After MaltaToday reveals confidential report on falsification of voters’ signatures, the highest body in the PN is considering meeting to discuss disciplinary action against Jean Pierre Debono
23 September 2017, 12:16pm
Staff Reporter
Staff Reporter
2 min read
Jean Pierre Debono (left) might appear in front of Administrative Council chaired by Karol Aquilina
The president of the Nationalist Party administrative council Karol Aquilina may call an urgent meeting to look into a report of the PN’s electoral commission that severely rebuked Nationalist MP Jean Pierre Debono who still holds the post of assistant secretary general of the Nationalist Party.
On Friday MaltaToday published a confidential report accusing Debono of having handled proxies for votes in the PN leadership election with falsified signatures.
The report clearly stated that under his watch, Debono failed to verify the signatures for the proxy votes, delivered to him by PN sectional committee members on behalf of party members.
Debono has categorically denied having falsified the signature. MaltaToday has since its original report accepted that Debono was accused by the electoral commission of not having verified the proxies handed to him. Debono unashamedly backed Adrian Delia as did his wife Kristy Debono who is also an MP.
Sources who spoke to MaltaToday said the proxies would have allowed Debono, a backer of new PN leader Adrian Delia, to collect voting documents so that he could deliver them to paid-up members eligible to vote in the PN leadership election. It is unclear how many of the collected votes were in fact cast.
The electoral commission headed by Joe Borg condemned the falsification of signatures as “an illicit electoral practice”.
The report was concluded just two days before the 16 September election, but was not divulged to any of the two candidates – Adrian Delia and Chris Said – or even to Opposition leader Simon Busuttil.
Today The Times confirmed that Debono could face disciplinary charges and in a separate editorial titled ‘Dark shadows at Pieta’’ the newspaper which openly backed Alex Perici Calascione in the leadership race suggested that Debono should have benn suspended forthwith. The newspaper also added that falsification of a signature was a criminal act. Then in a bold declaration the leader stated that the election for PN leader should be revisited.
