Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1535788
and adherence to OECD legal instruments. In order to at- tain this aim, Malta would be expected to submit an action plan. To date this has not been presented. What is the status of this plan? When does Mal- ta plan to finalise and submit such an action plan? One final thing. Any OECD member country could veto Malta's application. Those are the rules. Would Israel have vetoed Malta's eventual application had Abela denounced the rogue drone attack on the ship Con- science just off Hurd's Bank? Are there any problems with other countries? Is this the reason why, despite the empty promises, Robert Abela has not yet submitted Malta's applica- tion? Of course, with a prime minister who excels in hiding things from the people, do not expect any answers. 11 EDITORIAL maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 28 MAY 2025 MINISTERS submitted their asset declarations for 2023 with the cabinet secretary last year and yet they remain unpublished. At this rate, we presume that neither the asset declarations for 2024 will be pub- lished. The prime minister simply refuses to table the dec- larations in parliament in blatant disregard of a three- decades-long tradition. It is a slap in the face of good governance. The publication of asset declarations by ministers is an act of transparency that enables journalists and the public to hold the executive to account. By refusing to publish his declaration and those of his ministers and parliamentary secretaries, Robert Abela is eroding the public's right to scrutinise the executive. Conveniently, the prime minister hides behind the excuse that there is no legal obligation to table the asset declarations of ministers in parliament. The only obligation, he insists, is for asset declarations to be handed to the cabinet secretary by March of every year. Conveniently, the prime minister suggests that a reform is due that would ensure the declaration of assets for ministers and MPs will be in the same for- mat—declarations made by ministers are more oner- ous than those expected of MPs. Meanwhile, until this reform happens—there is absolutely no indication it will be unveiled anytime soon—ministers will continue shirking accountabil- ity. What's worse is that when asked about these asset declarations, the prime minister lied in January when he confirmed that the declarations had been submit- ted by ministers as required by the Cabinet Manual but added that these "were available to the public". They were not available to the public and when jour- nalists filed requests with the cabinet secretary for a copy of the declarations, these were refused. Until today, the asset declarations made by Abela's ministers for 2023—and by now even for 2024—re- main unavailable to the public. Standards Commissioner Joseph Azzopardi recently reiterated that ministerial declarations should be au- tomatically made public. He also drew attention to the 2019 recommendation by the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO), an offshoot of the Council of Europe, which stated that declarations should be made more easily and systematically accessible. Azzopardi observed that the dual system of declara- tions—for MPs and ministers—is unsatisfactory since it leads to "unnecessary duplication, confusion and a lack of systematic transparency". Nonetheless, the standards commissioner also not- ed that whatever the future system of asset declara- tions may be, there should be no reduction in the in- formation ministers are obliged to provide. He insisted that any change should be in line with the recommendations of the Organisation for Eco- nomic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and GRECO, and any reform to the system should follow public consultation and not be rushed. But Azzopardi was adamant that in the meantime, ministers' declarations for 2023 should be tabled. It goes without saying that the standard commis- sioner's recommendation has fallen on deaf ears. Ab- ela continues to ignore calls for more transparency and accountability. As a consequence, he is foment- ing suspicion that someone from his cabinet—includ- ing himself—may not have their house in order. What is there to hide? Why the disdain towards a more transparent system? Why shackle the public from being able to scrutinise the financial matters of members of the executive? Do the asset declarations reveal unexplained wealth for some ministers when compared to their lifestyles? It is a shame that the prime minister has embarked on a road that thrusts all ministers into the spotlight for the wrong reasons. At the Dar Centrali Similarly, it is a shame that the Nationalist Party continues to ignore the law by failing to submit its annual accounts and donation reports with the Elec- toral Commission. There is little to suggest the problem will be re- solved in the immediate future despite repeated com- mitments by Bernard Grech and other PN exponents that the problem will be solved. The PN cannot instil trust in how it will manage the country's finances when in government given the dif- ficulty it has in managing its own house. The party cannot hope to go into an election campaign with this issue unresolved—it simply makes it untrustworthy. Additionally, the PN cannot be seen credible when it speaks about the rule of law, when it has been flaunt- ing the law governing party finances with impunity. Grech cannot ignore this problem any longer. Lessons from Castille and Dar Centrali: Shameless behaviour and impunity maltatoday MaltaToday, MediaToday Co. Ltd, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 MANAGING EDITOR: SAVIOUR BALZAN EXECUTIVE EDITOR: KURT SANSONE EDITOR: PAUL COCKS Tel: (356) 21 382741-3, 21 382745-6 Website: www.maltatoday.com.mt E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt membership In reality, what was happening was that OECD was now imposing harsh financial decisions on Malta, without our country being able to influence decisions, since it was not a member of the organisation.