Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/665749
4 JAMES DEBONO ON Sunday Joseph Muscat played to an inclusive pitch as he did on the eve of the 2013 general election at the risk of ignoring a backdrop dominated by Panamagate as PN leader Simon Busuttil overplayed his hand by calling for the resigna- tion of Muscat instead of limiting himself to energy minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister's right hand man Keith Schembri. Instead of removing the albatross around his neck, by showing the exit sign to Mizzi and Schembri, in his speech to the general confer- ence where he was expected to send a clear message on the future of his two closest aides, Muscat once again played for time, postponing what looks an inevitable decision. In the knowledge that Busut- til would be addressing a protest against corruption calling for his resignation, which inevitably trans- lates in to a divisive pitch, Muscat deliberately tried to project himself as an inclusive leader railing against tribalism. Had there been no Panama ac- counts Muscat's speech on Sunday would have counted as one of his best. It was calm, sober and ap- pealed to people's rational side. On Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi he says that "their position would no longer be tenable if it re- sults they lied". But if it turns out that it was the truth, "it will still not be an excuse not to do anything" and that "we need to send the mes- sage that it's not just about doing what's legal but also doing what's right." The problem is its starting point; he seems to believe that a minis- ter and his chief of staff should not open an offshore account, especially while holding office as servants of the republic. No audit would change that fundamental fact. If that were the case he would have sacked Mizzi and Schembri seven weeks ago. One major stumbling block for Muscat is that according to Mizzi's version of events, he had informed the PM of his company in Panama three weeks before the scandal broke out. If Muscat had not seen anything wrong back than, he lacks the con- viction to call on his chief of staff and energy minister to resign. It also indicates that Muscat's moral compass was out of synch with the way offshore companies in coun- tries like Panama are shunned inter- nationally. In fact it was only after Panama leaks started dominating the international media that Mus- cat started to distance himself from Mizzi and Schembri. Moreover it was Muscat himself who accepted Mizzi's candidature as party deputy leader and failed to stop his candida- ture after the scandal broke out. Muscat also has a problem recon- ciling his past reputation for deci- sive action, which has seen him sack Anglu Farrugia from deputy leader before the election, Emmanuel Mal- lia from Minister after the drivers' incident and accept the resignation of Michael Falzon over the Auditor General report on the Gaffarena case. To make up for this indecisive streak, Muscat unconvincingly ar- gues that he does not care if he was losing in popularity by not taking a decision immediately: "Something more important than popularity is justice." The Prime Minister said he never shied away from taking deci- sions, but he never was one to base it on the pollsters. "The day I start taking decisions according to popularity will be the day I stop leading this country and this movement. If I looked at num- bers, divorce and civil unions would have never seen the light of day. The numbers said one thing, but my principles, my thoughts and my heart said another." The perception Muscat has to con- tend with is that he is more reluctant to take action in this case because it involves persons in his inner circle, maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 13 APRIL 2016 News Analysis: Trench warfare "If Muscat has already committed himself to take action, it remains a mystery why he is procrastinating on it" Muscat's speech looked too much of a re-enactment of the pre-2013 days against a very different backdrop dominated by Panamagate