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2 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 25 JUNE 2014 News Opposition presents motion to safeguard Ombudsman's role in army promotions row TIM ATTARD MONTALTO THE Nationalist Party yesterday presented a formal motion to the Speaker of the House of Representa- tives, Anglu Farrugia, for a debate on the home affairs ministry's re- fusal to furnish the Ombudsman with documents needed for an in- quiry into army promotions. The ministry is refusing to comply with the Ombudsman's request for information as part of an investiga- tion into various promotions within the Armed Forces, claiming that complaints by certain ranks should be made to the President of the Re- public, and not to the parliamentary ombudsman. "This situation, where the govern- ment is denying access of informa- tion to a constitutional body such as the Ombudsman, is unprecedented," Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi said. "Checks and balances are cru- cial for any country that deserves to call itself democratic." In comments to MaltaToday, Az- zopardi reiterated this stance. "This motion requests that the Prime Minister, as the head of government, orders the Home Affairs Ministry to fully collaborate with the Om- budsman," he said. "It is very seri- ous when you have a constitutional authority like the Ombudsman - which is there to safeguard the rights of the citizens - in a situation where the Ministry of Home Affairs is denying it access to information, which it needs in order to carry out an investigation." "The law even allows for the Om- budsman to take criminal steps against the permanent secretary of the ministry for ignoring him, for refusing to answer questions, and for not producing the necessary information," he said. "We say that we are a democratic and a European country but when it comes to the crunch, the government denies such access to the ombudsman – who has an obligation to investigate – to see whether or not there was an injus- tice." On his part, Speaker Farrugia said it was important to clarify the con- flicting situation and interpret it. He expressed his hope that a "ma- ture and responsible" solution could be sought from both sides of the House. Yesterday the Speaker said that although the matter was of public interest, it was not urgent and that it would be the House Business Com- mittee to set the date for the debate. This followed Opposition leader Simon Busuttil's request that the Speaker give a ruling on whether the debate ought to be held at that very sitting. JURGEN BALZAN HERITAGE Malta and the Super- intendence of Cultural Heritage need a revamp to ref lect today's re- alities, justice and culture minister Owen Bonnici said. Yesterday, Parliament discussed the motion on the financial esti- mates of Heritage Malta and the Superintendence of Cultural Herit- age, which was postponed on Mon- day after opposition MP Francis Zammit Dimech argued that since the motion did not include Herit- age Malta's accounts and annual report the motion was invalid. However, the minister tabled Heritage Malta's annual report and promised that the necessary docu- ments would be tabled once these were available to him. Kicking off the debate Bonnici explained that the two agencies play a vital role in the maintenance of the country's cultural heritage and in order to increase their ef- ficiency he would be proposing a number of amendments to the law regulating the two bodies. Firstly, Bonnici said, a number of amendments to the 2002 Cultural Heritage Act would be presented in the coming weeks. "I believe that the time has come to review the law which was last amended in 2005, to ensure that it is relevant to current realities," the minister said. "This government is committed to increasing the resources at the superintendence, which only had 11 operating officials when we took office last year," he added. The minister said that a 2006 report had suggested that the su- perintendence needed at least 30 officers, adding that once the Man- agement Efficiency Unit completes its report, the government would be evaluating the costs of this ex- ercise and carry out the necessary changes. Turning to Heritage Malta, Bon- nici said that in 2013 the agency did not register any losses, how- ever he warned that the particular circumstances the agency is facing in 2014, especially the temporary closure of the Hypogeum and the Tarxien Temples, would have a negative effect on its revenues. Moreover, by the end of next year the agency will take over two new sites: Fort St Elmo and Fort St An- gelo which the minister said would bolster Heritage Malta's revenue in the long run. "Although these sites will even- tually boost the agency's income, we must keep in mind capital ex- penditure and investments beyond EU funding and recurrent expen- ditures." Another key project which Her- itage Malta will undertake in the coming years is the migration of the National Museum of Fine Arts and the creation of a Contempo- rary Art Centre which is set to be established by 2018, when Valletta will officially become the Europe- an Cultural Capital. He added that another factor which could affect Heritage Mal- ta's earnings was the 450th anni- versary of the Great Siege of Malta, which will be celebrated next year. Yet, the agency was currently doing a cost-cutting exercise by introducing new technologies and fiscal systems at its sites. In concluding remarks, Bonnici said that the forthcoming events, such as V18, the CHOGM meet- ing and the EU presidency, would pose a "big challenge," adding that although not all events were ex- clusively cultural ones, "they will undoubtedly leave their mark " on the country. "I believe that we must increase cooperation between different en- tities to overcome these challenges and also involve other institutions, including local councils and edu- cational bodies. The more these bodies work together, the stronger the cultural foundations will get and citizens will not only appre- ciate Malta's cultural heritage but they will identif y themselves with it." Opposition MP Francis Zammit Dimech said that although the PN would be voting against the money bill, in line with Parliamentary practice, "it does not mean that we do not appreciate the work being done by these agencies." But the former PN minister warned that Heritage Malta's au- tonomy was under threat by "the interference of somebody at the Office of the Prime Minister who has a well-known interest in Herit- age Malta." Heritage agencies to be given more resources "The time has come to review the law which was last amended in 2005, to ensure that it is relevant to current realities" Mario De Marco (centre) with Speaker of the House Anglu Farrugia (second from right). Also pictured are Jason Azzopardi (left) and Nationalist whip David Agius

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