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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 4 JUNE 2014 News 5 deemed an extension of the firm's in-house engagement, the NAO re- port states that the rates payable to Mamo TCV for legal work related to the privatisation "were revised upwards." In another privatisation – the re- concession of the lotteries licence – the legal firm received a direct order of €125,000 without final ap- proval from the finance ministry. Despite an invitation for propos- als, none of the five selected legal firms were informed of the criteria that the advisory committee based its final decision on. "GVTH, the firm selected to provide such le- gal services, submitted the most financially favourable offer out of the contracted firms." But GVTH did not seek the PU's approval for incurrence of fees over the number of exceeded hours of work, and that the vetting of in- voice payments had been "weak". In its report NAO also noted a general lack of clarity in the deline- ation of responsibility between PU and MIMCOL with respect to the privatisations under analysis. This was mainly manifested in the payment processes reviewed, which lacked a coordinated sys- tem of invoice endorsement, key in ensuring the appropriate disburse- ment of funds. NAO considered the system of checks employed as weak, with different parties in- volved assuming that the other party was responsible for specific processes and tasks. Furthermore, NAO noted that no clear respon- sibility with regard to the issuance of the letter of engagement to firms engaged to provide legal services existed. Legal firms took over €536,000 on privatisations Privatisation Legal firm Period Cost (€) Malta Shipyards Ltd Fenech & Fenech May 2008 – March 2011 301,374 Ricasoli Tank Cleaning Facility Fenech & Fenech April 2011 – January 2013 71,452 Yacht Marinas Mamo TCV, Fenech & Fenech July 2008 – December 2010 19,054 National Lotteries re- concession GVTH May 2011 – July 2012 79,299 TOTAL 536,439 JURGEN BALZAN THE time has come for PN leader Si- mon Busuttil to come out of his shell and ring in the necessary changes towards the party's recovery. This conclusion was shared by the three guests on Saviour Balzan's Re- porter, which analysed the PN's dis- mal result in last week's European elections and its future. In an interview published on Sun- day's edition of MaltaToday, the PN leader dismissed calls for his resig- nation, insisting that he "will not run away". Lawyer and veteran PN supporter Austin Sammut said that since the election result he had met "many, many Nationalists who believe that Simon Busuttil is not the right person to lead the party or that he should have tendered his resigna- tion after this [European elections] result". However while explaining that confusion and disillusion is reign- ing within the PN's internal struc- tures, Sammut added that the re- sentment towards Busuttil was the result of natural anger in the wake of the bruising defeat at the hands of Joseph Muscat's Labour. David Griscti, the chairperson of the PN's think-tank AZAD, said that disappointment within the party stemmed from the lack of change in the Opposition's attitude and discourse. "One of the first things the PN should do is show humility and recognise its errors, also in the way it treated a number of persons who were personally attacked. Such be- haviour is unacceptable for any party, even more so for the Nationalist Par- ty which is supposed to be a popular party. I believe that people are angry because the PN has not reached out to these persons," he said. However, Griscti said that follow- ing last week's result, it appeared as though Busuttil is prepared to instil changes within the party, despite be- ing relatively new to the job and giv- en the lack of space in which he could manoeuvre; especially while flanked by two deputy leaders – Mario de Marco and Beppe Fenech Adami – representing two political dynasties with a long established power base within the party. Sammut concurred with the view that de Marco and Fenech Adami "are too strong" insisting that the decision to create a new post for a second deputy leader was "a com- promise" to appease two powerful dynasties. Academic and political analyst Car- men Sammut said the Labour Party should heed the hard lesson learnt by the PN, which is going through a rough patch after a 25-year cycle in which it was the natural party in government. "The biggest problem lays in the PN's strategists, who for long years were envied by Labour," she said, add- ing that the biggest error committed by the PN was its call to "show Joseph Muscat the yellow card," despite Bu- suttil lagging behind the Prime Min- ister in the trust ratings. She added that the PN was too neg- ative in its criticism of government's actions, instead of underlining its candidates' strengths. Stressing the need of new blood in order for the PN to renew itself, Griscti said that the party needs to open itself up and "create spaces for creativity in which young people can express themselves". Asked where the PN should posi- tion itself ideologically, Sammut said the PN should simply "listen to the people," which she said should go beyond cultivating the party grass roots in a changing landscape where party allegiances are weaker than ever before. Griscti pointed out that the biggest difference between the two big par- ties lies in the fact that "Labour has understood the people, and the PN has not". On whether Busuttil should remain a bridge uniting the conservative and liberal wings within the PN, Griscti said, "I believe he should take a clear stand, the guiding principle for Bu- suttil and the party should be that of absolute respect to the every person's dignity. I believe that this would give an answer to all moral dilemmas." This guiding principle, he said, was clearly lacking in the PN's stand on divorce and civil unions. Political analysts agree Busuttil should ring in the changes Carmen Sammut

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