PN says Delia-Busuttil situation ‘resolved’, former party leader to stay

PN Leader Adrian Delia has declared that there is no intention to initiate any internal procedure against Simon Busuttil in the wake of the publication of the Egrant inquiry conclusions, the party said in a statement.

The inquiry found no evidence that the infamous Panama company belonged to the PM or his wife. After the report was published, Delia had stripped Busuttil of his good governance portfolio and invited him to suspend himself from the PN Parliamentary Group. Busuttil has refused. A number of MPs had backed Busuttil, believing that Delia acted too fast.

A series of meetings between the two warring factions, mediated by former PM Lawrence Gonzi and former Deputy PM Tonio Borg took place over the past few days.

In a statement on Monday evening, the PN said no internal action would be launched against Busuttil, adding that this would be confirmed by the party's Administrative Council.

Delia reminded that there are a number of ongoing magisterial inquiries that raised serious doubts about the behaviour of senior government officials, including minister Konrad Mizzi and OPM Chief of Staff Keith Schembri.

Despite the reports compiled by state agencies, these officials still act with total impunity, the PN said. The PN would keep following the situation and insist that justice be carried out within the shortest possible time.

"The fight against corruption and bad governance will not only continue but it will be stepped up," the party said. "It is important that everyone in the party continues with this fight so that the truth will come out," the PN said, hinting that Busuttil would stay on. "Our focus should be to offer a united Opposition that works in favour of righteousness and the national interest," it said.

No mention was made of Delia's invitation for Busuttil to suspend himself but the talk of unity implies that he will stay. The statement also made no mention of Busuttil's good governance portfolio.

In a statement, Busuttil said he welcomed Delia's declaration. He also noted that there were ongoing inquiries involving people close to the Prime Minister. "I believe that the Opposition should be united against our only political adversary – the present government," Busuttil said.

from The Malta Independent https://ift.tt/2mQZUg6
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