Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1523374
2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 JUNE 2024 NEWS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The source said ministers Miri- am Dalli, Clyde Caruana and Ian Borg, who at some stage were be- ing considered as potential nom- inees, have indicated they are not interested in the post. But Abela has been mulling oth- er names as well, another govern- ment source said. "The names of [Labour MEP election candidate] Steve Ellul and [Culture Minis- ter] Owen Bonnici have also been whispered in the corridors at Castille as possible nominees for the post of European Commis- sioner," the source noted. "The only sure thing at this stage is that the Prime Minister has not yet made up his mind de- spite this being an imminent de- cision," they added. After EU leaders agreed last Thursday that Ursula von der Leyen should serve a second term as European Commission presi- dent, she will have to be approved by the European Parliament in a vote expected to be held on 18 Ju- ly. Afterwards each member state has to nominate one European Commissioner, who would then undergo a grilling at the hands of MEPs after the summer months. Malta's first choice for commis- sioner, Chris Fearne, dropped out of the race last month when crim- inal charges were filed against him over the Vitals corruption case. With Fearne pulling out, Abela was left with a vacuum to fill and although Dalli represent- ed the ideal choice, given her ex- perience as an MEP and minister, she took a step back. The technocrat with no ministe- rial experience Glenn Micallef worked at Mal- ta's representation in Brussels as a European policy advisor before taking up the OPM post in No- vember 2020. Micallef had also served as head of the EU secre- tariat in the Foreign Ministry. Micallef's technocratic roles have given him insight into how EU institutions work and the ne- gotiating process involved to pass European legislation. The posi- tion of head of secretariat in the OPM also put him in touch with all key government decisions on a day-to-day basis. Nonetheless, the fact that he has no ministerial experience and was never an elected official could be a stumbling block for the post of European Commissioner. Nomi- nees face a tough grilling process at the hands of MEPs, some with years of political experience. "Robert Abela is sounding out various people to see what they think of a possible Glenn [Mi- callef] nomination, which in itself shows that he is not 100% certain of the choice," another source said. In a resignation note on Face- book, Micallef suggested that his departure from the OPM role had been pre-agreed with the Prime Minister in what was a photocopy reaction to that of Labour Party deputy leader for party affairs Daniel Micallef, who is also stepping down. When Daniel Micallef an- nounced his resignation after the European election, he insisted the decision was taken two years ago but agreed to postpone it un- til after the European election. The toxic Muscat legacy Another name that has been doing the rounds is that of Owen Bonnici, who is one of the veter- an Labour MPs despite his rela- tively young age, having first been elected to parliament in 2008. But unlike Glenn Micallef, Bon- nici's political career is tied to the Joseph Muscat legacy, a factor that can cause him problems with MEPs if he is Malta's nominee for commissioner. Bonnici could be expected to face flak over the orders he had given as justice minister prior to 2020 to have the Daphne Caru- ana Galizia makeshift memorial outside the law courts cleared from flowers. In 2020, the Constitutional Court found that Bonnici had breached protestors' human rights when giving those orders. It was Abela, upon becoming Prime Minister in 2020, who put a stop to the charade that would see government workers at the dead of night clear the memorial from flowers, candles and mes- sages. In December 2021, Bonn- ici apologised for his actions in a newspaper interview. Labour and PM's quandary But the dilemma on who to nominate as European Commis- soner is probably the easiest to solve in the wake of the dismal European election result. The Prime Minister is caught in a quandary on how to react to the result that saw the PL lose its su- permajority, according to several sources in the Labour Party. After the result, Abela blamed civil servants in cushy jobs for putting spokes in governments wheel, a comment rebuffed by the country's two biggest trade un- ions – the UĦM and the GWU. He also floated the possibility of revisiting the abortion law. But so far, Abela has avoided ad- dressing the elephant in the room – what to do with former prime minister Joseph Muscat after a court ruled there was enough pri- ma facie evidence to issue a bill of indictment on corruption charg- es in the Vitals case. So far, apart from platitudes on the need to listen to the vot- ers' message, the only tangible outcomes after the election have been Daniel Micallef's decision to step down and Glenn Micallef's resignation as head of secretariat and his immediate replacement with Mark Mallia. Another conundrum facing the party is the position of Chris Fearne as deputy leader parlia- mentary affairs. Although Fearne resigned from Cabinet after he was charged in the Vitals case, he stayed on as deputy leader. Effectively, government has no deputy prime minister and with the Vitals case expected to drag on, the PL could be left stuttering with a deputy leader who cannot carry out his political functions. Abela handed Owen Bonnici the role of leader of the House alongside his ministerial port- folio after Fearne resigned from Cabinet. The role is normally occupied by the deputy prime minister. But other than this mi- nor decision, nobody in the party, not least the Prime Minister, has dared raise the issue concerning Fearne's future. Abela may nominate former head of secretariat Glenn Micallef as Malta's next commissioner Robert Abela (left) is hard-pressed to choose a new European Commissioner. Among the names being mentioned are his former head of secretariat Glenn Micallef (top right) and culture minister Owen Bonnici (bottom right)