Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1491153
maltatoday | SUNDAY •29 JANUARY 2023 8 INTERVIEW Raphael Vassallo rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt The time for 'theatrics' is Prime Minister Robert Abela re- cently declared that "he did not feel it safe to allow his daughter to walk alone in Valletta." Your own reaction was to demand the immediate resignation of Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri. But while that may indeed be warranted, for a va- riety of reasons: will Camilleri's resignation, on its own, real- ly resolve the issue of violent crime in Malta? First of all, the statement by the Prime Minister was slight- ly more qualified than that. He didn't just say 'I am worried about my daughter walking the streets of our capital city': he al- so added something that is very relevant. Namely, that up until a few months ago, he had no such qualms about this, whatsoev- er: but now, at this very point in time… he does. What does this mean? Essen- tially, it is a certificate that what we [the Nationalist Party] have long been stating, is in actual fact true. The Home Affairs and Security Minister has clearly failed, insofar as the 'security' of each and every one of us – our- selves; our friends and family; our youngsters; our elderly, etc. - is concerned. And the stories we are now hearing, are of a certain level of violence that is almost unprec- edented. There has been a plu- rality of instances of unprovoked violence, of the kind that we nev- er really used to see before. I have been active in the legal profession for 30 years now; and I can see, and visualise, the sheer extent of this increase in violence. And this has led to each and every one of us feeling that we are no longer secure in our own homes; on our roads; in our plac- es of work… and given that it is job of the Home Affairs Minis- ter to guarantee our security: he [Byron Camilleri] has clearly, and obviously, failed… That, as it happens, is also this newspaper's editorial posi- tion. But while we can agree on Camilleri's unsuitability: it still doesn't answer the ques- tion of what effect his removal will actually have. There may be other factors at play here: including Malta's rapid popula- tion-growth; rising inequality; and so on. How will Camilleri's removal address any of this? I agree that there are certainly more factors involved; but you have to look at where the prob- lems really are. Why have we reached this stage? There are a plurality of reasons: all of which point directly back to the minis- ter. First and foremost: we have a completely demoralised, demo- tivated Police Force. Our police are overworked, overstretched… but definitely not overpaid. As a result, we have a situation today, where no call for applications for new recruits, ever reaches any- where near the amount of appli- cants that are actually required. Simply put: we are not attracting anyone to join the Force. Furthermore, we have various police officers – even senior of- ficers – who are so demotivated, that they end up taking the very difficult decision to actually leave: sometimes, before reaching the 25-year pension threshold. Why is this happening? Who is responsible for the Police Force? Meanwhile, there has been a certain sense of impunity – a sense of 'anything goes': that, whatever happens, it's never re- ally going to be a 'problem' - in- stilled in recent years; and there can be no clearer example of this, than the way Byron Camilleri handled the issue of the former Director of Prisons [Robert Brin- cau]. That sent out the entirely wrong message… For the sake of filling out back- ground details: Byron Camill- eri chose to retain Brincau in his position since last October, despite the fact that he was charged with 'threatening an ambulance driver with a gun'. You had called for Brincau's re- moval, at the time… Actually, we were even more cautious than that. We argued, back then, that since [Brincau] was undergoing criminal pro- ceedings, he should suspend himself until those proceedings were terminated. The reply we got from Byron Camilleri, how- ever, was that he did not want to replace Brincau – even tempo- rarily – because he was afraid he would 'create a vacuum' [within the prison administration]. But what 'vacuum' was he talk- ing about? First of all, Camill- eri seemed to be implying that – with all due respect – there is no one, on this entire island, who can temporarily replace a prison director; but secondly… when it came to finally replacing Robert Brincau, after he was found guilty by the courts: Byron Camilleri filled that position, immediately. Clearly, then, it was just an excuse. And what makes it so reprehensible is that the charg- es against Brincau were highly serious: they included violent and abusive behaviour; misuse of prison property [the gun], for the purpose of committing a crime; and so on… Essentially, that places Robert Brincau in the same position, as the people he is himself meant to 'manage': the people in prison, basically. I mean: you don't often see a clearer, and more blatant, example of impunity than that. Not to mention the damage it has caused to the reputation of the prison itself … Just a second ago, however, you admitted that the Police Force is struggling to hire suf- ficient personnel; and the same problems clearly exist in other areas, including prison and the law-courts. Clearly, then, there IS a logistical difficulty, in fill- ing those positions. So what – beyond sacking Byron Camilleri – is the Nationalist Party actu- ally proposing, to resolve this issues? Let's start with the police. In case I gave the wrong impression earlier: the reason that the Police are finding it so hard to recruit new officers, is not because of the lack of any capable or quali- fied people, to fill those roles. Far from it. No, the problem is that the roles themselves are not attrac- tive enough. It's not just a case of financial conditions; I would say the work environment, as a whole, is not conducive to at- tracting new people, either. Now: recently we spent E2.3 million on new police uniforms – and I have information to the effect that they are, in fact, more comfortable than the previous ones. But that's just a branding exer- PN spokesman for Home Affairs and Security JOE GIGLIO insists that his opposite number – Minister Byron Camilleri – has to go: holding him directly responsible for the decline of Malta's law-enforcement sectors, across the board