An extraordinary situation in the courts

An extraordinary case is currently unfolding in court.

We refer, of course, to the constitutional case filed by Leader of the Opposition Adrian Delia against Attorney General Peter Grech in order to acquire a full copy of the Egrant inquiry report – just as Prime Minister Joseph Muscat already has.

The Opposition leader argues that as holder of one of the most important constitutional roles, it is not unreasonable for him to expect a copy of the report, and that the attorney general’s recalcitrance is leading to a political imbalance.

Attorney General Grech, as legal adviser to the government, argues that Delia should not be given the full report.

The extraordinary thing is that Prime Minister Muscat, whom the attorney general represents as official lawyer, claims to want the full report to be made public (although some say this is only because he’s sure it won’t actually happen).

It is a very convoluted case because the prime minister has an interest in the case as

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one of the 23 witnesses summoned by Delia.

The attorney general, too, happens to be one of those witnesses. He claims that he should not be called to testify because the witnesses on the list were ‘irrelevant’.

We fail to see how his testimony is irrelevant, however, when he’s the one calling all the shots, keeping not just the Opposition leader, but the rest of the country from seeing the 1,400-page report.

The court has now rejected the attorney general’s request and, in a very unusual move, he will have to testify.

It may be true that the attorney general is not alone in his opposition to the report’s publication. Several other lawyers are said to have warned the prime minister that publishing the full report would be unwise – that it could set a dangerous precedent.

But, then again, this is no ordinary inquiry, and the Egrant case is no run-ofthe-mill scandal. It hinges on an allegation that the prime minister has described as the “biggest lie in Maltese political history;” an allegation that led to last year’s early election; an allegation which has widened the already-gaping political divide in this country.

So, yes, the public needs closure and the full report must come out.

While the report’s conclusions are clear in that no evidence has been found to support claims that either Prime Minister Joseph Muscat or his wife Michelle own the Panamanian company Egrant Inc, the real owner remains a mystery – and that information is found in the full report.

Adrian Delia this week labelled Attorney General Grech “a threat to democracy.” Harsh words, perhaps, but the fact is these burning questions need answering – once and for all. The report and its contents cannot be kept under lock and key forever.

Delia argues that this case if about freedom of information and political discrimination. That may be true. But there is more to it than that. We support his case because we also want the entire report to be made public for everyone to see.

As far as the public is concerned, it would be pointless giving Delia a copy of the report only for it to end up in a drawer somewhere.