Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1321294
5 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 DECEMBER 2020 OPINION An independent inquiry would have been better off with truly independently- minded members of the judiciary, who would have given the findings of the inquiry more substance and credibility A year ago, the country was facing a political crisis that left us in a state of paralysis and shock. Retail outlets came to a standstill, plagued by a sense of uncertainty and fear. Protests rocked Valletta and Malta's one-time 'star' politician an- nounced he would stand down (but not before visiting Dubai and Bethlehem on a 'vacation' paid partly by the State and so called 'inconsequential do- nors'). Friends and businessmen of Yorgen Fenech looked on in dis- belief as they saw one of Malta's richest, young and promising businessman go down in a mur- der plot that left us with more questions than answers. The Labour Party elected its new leader and prime minis- ter in an attempt to move on, after the upsetting revelations about Joseph Muscat and Keith Schembri. Needless to say, the country remained without some very important answers about who, how and why Daphne Caruana Galizia was murdered. The public inquiry led by Jus- tice Michael Mallia has failed to impress when it comes to sep- arating fact from fiction. It has digressed from the crux of the matter and at times has shown itself concerned over minuti- ae best suited to a dinner-table conversation. The whole pro- cess has unfortunately been en- hanced by a strong political bias of the lawyers representing the family, which at times has pur- sued a line of questioning that misses the wood for the trees. An independent inquiry would have been better off with truly independently-minded mem- bers of the judiciary, who would have given the findings of the inquiry more substance and credibility. The lack of partici- pation by the State Advocate to proffer an intellectually-curious and critical line of questioning on certain assertions made dur- ing the inquiry, is equally dis- heartening. The questions that need an- swering, or at least explored through some clear-headed reasoning, would probably be these: Is the murder plot wholly the design of Yorgen Fenech, or are there more individuals? Were the plotters or plotter motivated by vendetta over some disparaging invective, or was it linked to revelations pub- lished or unpublished, or was it both? Did Muscat and Keith Schem- bri and others intentionally drag out the arrest of Yorgen Fenech to buy themselves time? Are the police privy to more details which would widen the culpability of this murder? The answers to these ques- tions are not too difficult if one where to sit down and careful- ly sift through the material in the public domain and 'facts' in the hands of some investigative journalists. The first thing that we are still not too sure about, is wheth- er Caruana Galizia had irked someone so badly that they had willingly accepted to be part of this execution. We know that apart from being a journalist with a serious eye for good jour- nalism backed by hard facts, she was equally merciless in her poison-pen invective, vex- ing many, high and low. Her role as a publicist for influential people and businessman tends to be grossly underrated. One of these clients had been in- deed been a businessman who met his untimely demise at the hands of a car bomb, probably the same type used in the Bidni- ja assassination. It is also certain that she had more information than met the eye about 17 Black, and one that linked Yorgen Fenech with Keith Schembri directly. And it was news of the Dubai-based 17 Black that coincided with so many incidents and strategi- cally leaked news stories which originated from Castille itself. The motive is the hardest thing to establish here. 17 Black was identified as a target client of the Panama companies, all shrouded in secrecy and away from prying eyes. It is far worse that we now know that Joseph Muscat lied when he said that he did not know who owned 17 Black. And though politicians can get with a lie or two, 17 Black was no laughing matter. It has far more significance than most news stories. Beyond the scandals of the Panama Papers, a secret com- pany in Dubai which linked Muscat's chief of staff with one of Malta's richest businessmen, an Electrogas shareholder, and who way back in 2019 was sus- pected of being a person of in- terest in the Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination, is clear- ly the most worrying thing of all. Muscat knew all, or most of this, or had a clear outline of the links and networks. He knew Schembri and Fenech were partners. And then he lied to the press about 17 Black. If confirmed, there is plausi- ble evidence in the hands of the police that could lead them to others sources of the finance that was pooled to to kill Caru- ana Galizia, and that it did not come from one source – that Yorgen Fenech might have been one of the contributors to this plot. There could have been others, with the executioner, the bomb-makers, and financial backers all working on some level towards the same goal. The other consideration is to see to what level (and this something that many members of the Cabinet believe to be a probability), did the people who administered the country could have influenced the Security Services to delay the course of justice. Last but not least, the Maltese police. There can be no argu- ment that piecing the infor- mation together is not an easy task. That putting the jigsaw puzzle together has been a grim challenge marked by numerous technical and legal hurdles. But there are many unan- swered queries that make the police appear weak, predis- posed to one theory and in- clined to protect those who are surely culpable in one form or another. This case cannot be closed and sealed if part of the truth is cov- ered up or set aside. Sooner or later the truth will have to sur- face; only when the whole truth is known will this incubus come to an end. Everyone is eager to see this case closed. And hopefully, 2021 will not only serve to rid us of COVID but also of this nightmare that has changed our lives forever. A Merry Christmas to every- one! The questions that went unanswered Saviour Balzan