Information about police ammo, army weapons ‘sensitive and confidential,’ minister says

Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia has refused to answer questions by a PN MP on the type of ammunition used by the police and the type of weapons currently found in the Armed Forces of Malta’s arsenal, saying that the information was “confidential, sensitive and affects national security.”

PN MP Karol Aquilina asked the minister to state what type of ammunition the police used, the date of acquisition, and the state or entity that had sold them.

In another parliamentary question, he asked the minister to state how many weapons the army had for use by its members, their type, the year in which they had been acquired and the state or entity that had sold them.

He also asked about the ammunition used by the AFM.

The minister’s reply was standard for all three PQs.

Under the current administration, both the police force and the army have seen modernisation of equipment and weapons. Over the past few years, the police’s Rapid Intervention Unit has acquired new assault rifles and submachine guns, while the AFM’s Special Operations Unit has also recently fielded brand new assault rifles, as seen in the Marsa raid that bagged the three main suspects in the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

The rest of the army, however, still uses outdated equipment that was either left over by the British or donated from China and North Korea.

The minister was also asked to state the number of road blocks that had been carried out by the police since 2013 and to state how many had confirmed cases of illegal behaviour.

Farrugia said the requested information was not held in ‘computerised form’ and that answering the question would require a disproportionate amount of time and resources by the police. He simply said that district and RIU police carried out regular patrols and, when necessary, set up road blocks in various parts of the country.

He also said that since 2013 the Armed Forces of Malta have not set up any road blocks. Such a thing would only take place at the request of the police, the minister said.