Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1283588
5 JAMES DEBONO THE forthcoming report by the Nationalist Party commission carrying out a due diligence of Adrian Delia's and Bernard Grech's candidature for the party leadership, will not in- clude any recommendation on whether they should be allowed to contest or not. PN secretary-general, Francis Zammit Dimech, confirmed that the vaunted due diligence vetting of the candidates – a re- cent addition to the newly-ap- proved PN statute – will be lim- ited to "an X-ray which gives a clear picture" of both candi- dates who will be contesting. On Friday, candidates com- mission chair Colin Bowman said that "neither the due dil- igence panel (made up of An- tonio Ghirlando, Mario Galea and Clyde La Rosa) nor the Commission will be issuing any declaration as to whether the two leadership contenders have satisfied the minimum criteria to be eligible to contest." Once the report is concluded it will be passed on to the Ad- ministrative Council and the Electoral Commission which will have three days to open up the call for nominations. "The whole purpose is to pro- vide the Electoral Commission and the Administrative Council with a resumé about the two persons who have expressed an interest in this contest, which resume or extracts thereof could then be communicated to the party members," Bow- man said. The party statute itself clear- ly states that the commission auditing the candidates should not only issue a generic report, but actually recommend which candidates fulfil its criteria or not. When contacted earlier in the week, Zammit Dimech pointed out that this part of the statute would only come into force af- ter the next general election. The new statute's rules on electing a party leader only come into effect after the next general election. Article 90, which governs the due diligence process, falls under the purview of Article 172 (3), which sus- pends Articles 89-99 until after the next general election. Zammit Dimech referred to the decision not to exclude any of the two candidates on the ba- sis of the due diligence report, as being rooted in "realpolitik", recognising the "grave political implications" of stopping ei- ther of the two candidates from contesting at this stage. "The context is one of a par- ticular election triggered by a vote in the party's General Council and not following a general election as foreseen in the statute," Zammit Dimech said, suggesting that the elec- tion was 'ad hoc' in nature. By not excluding any candi- date on the basis of the due dil- igence report, the PN may have found a way out of the quan- dary, leaving up to members to evaluate the report which is expected to be finalised in the next weeks. Voting is expected to take place over six days. The final result of this electoral process is expected on 3 October. maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 AUGUST 2020 NEWS PAUL COCKS ADRIAN Delia's deputy leader for par- ty affairs Robert Arrigo has not made it clear he will step down should rival can- didate Bernard Grech be elected in the news weeks as the PN's new leader. The man vying to replace Adrian Delia as leader of the Opposition has not yet met the two current deputy leaders to determine if there is common ground for them to work with him, MaltaToday has learned. A spokesman for Grech said he could not confirm if the candidate had, as yet, met Arrigo and deputy leader for parlia- mentary affairs David Agius, to discuss their role within the party, were he to win the upcoming leadership election. The two deputy leaders will retain their posts as deputy leaders, unless they re- sign them of their own volition. The next election for deputy leaders will be trig- gered after the next general election. The same spokesperson insisted that Grech had repeatedly stated that he stood for unity and that he believed everyone could have a role to play with- in the party. "Dr Grech has made it very clear he is prepared to work with anyone who shows a willingness to contribute," the spokesman said. "He has even said this of Adrian Delia." Grech's failure to meet the deputy leaders was confirmed by Arrigo. When asked why no such meeting has as yet been held, Arrigo simply answered, "You should ask Bernard Grech that". Arrigo is currently serving as the par- ty's treasurer and the chairman of Media. link, the party's media arm. And while Grech, if he became leader, could ostensibly have Arrigo replaced as party treasurer and Media.link chairman, he would not be able to force Arrigo and Agius out of the deputy leader role. So if Grech were to win the leadership election he could very well find himself with a leadership team still loyal to Delia and with his hands tied. And Arrigo says no one on Grech's team has as yet con- tacted him or sounded him out. But this was dismissed by a spokesman for Grech, who said that there had "been some communication" though he could not confirm when. "This is not a question of meeting peo- ple for reassurance but Dr Grech is slow- ly going through a process of meeting everyone within the party," he said. As to whether he would willingly step down as deputy leader, should Grech edge Delia out, Arrigo said his term ran until the next general election. "But I am not glued to my chair," he told MaltaToday. And hinting at his success at turning around the flailing party finances, he said, "My success is a template for any- body who comes after me". Arrigo was also sceptical as to how suc- cessful Grech could be at uniting the Na- tionalist Party were he to win the leader- ship election. "It takes two to heal a rift," he said. "And translating words into ac- tion can be made very difficult." Attempts to contact David Agius proved futile by the time of going to print. PN deputy leaders unclear about future with Grech David Agius (left) and Robert Arrigo (right): if elected, Bernard Grech could be in for a forced marriage with Delia's right-hand men until the next general election PN's X-ray of candidates won't disqualify anyone Call for Tenders Laptop devices for employees in church schools The Secretariat for Catholic Education (SfCE) in Malta would like to announce the launch of the following tender: SfCE 001/2020: Tender for the supply of Laptop Devices for Employees in Church Schools [Deadline: 12 October 2020 at 09:30] Tender documents may be obtained from the Archdiocese of Malta website: https://church.mt/jobs/ Interested bidders are to submit their SEALED TENDERS by the deadline indicated above. 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