Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/680790
3 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 18 MAY 2016 News MALTA 14.5x18cm ING.pdf 1 19/04/16 16:45 PN to file writs to strike off IIP citizens from electoral register All checks and balances in place for registration of new voters, Electoral Commission retorts MIRIAM DALLI THE Nationalist Party will de- mand the removal of beneficiar- ies of the Individual Investor Pro- gramme from the electoral register because they had not yet resided for an aggregate six months in the last 18 months. Malta's electoral law allows citi- zens to vote in an election only if they have fulfilled minimum resi- dency requirements. The IIP citi- zens only recently acquired their Maltese citizenship for €650,000. Citizenship incurs an automatic right to vote, but actually voting in an election requires that the voter spent six months in the 18 months preceding an election. The PN deputy leader for party affairs Beppe Fenech Adami said that an exercise carried by the PN on a sample of 100 IIP citizens shows that these registered citi- zens had been included in the lat- est electoral register. Insisting that the Electoral Com- mission had to answer for the shortcomings, Fenech Adami said "a number of people who don't have the right to vote have, in the most abusive and corrupt manner have been given the right to vote. Applicants have an application form where they're asked whether they have dual citizenship, and whether they have resided for at least six months in Malta." But in comments to MaltaTo- day, electoral office chief Joseph Church ensured that "prior to reg- istering any voter albeit Maltese or foreigner, all the checks and balances would have been set in motion by the Electoral staff to en- sure the validity of all applications without distinction referred to the Electoral Office by IDMO (Identity Malta)." Yet he said that the commission would be discussing this matter "as soon as possible". Maltese political parties are al- lowed at law to ask that voters who do not feel Constitutional requi- sites or are mentally infirm, or have passed away recently, be struck off the electoral register. But Fenech Adami accused the government of buying votes and described Labour as "a threat to democracy". Fenech Adami said that a Russian national who had not spent 180 days in the last year and a half had acquired the right to vote. Another applicant, a Chinese national, de- clared they had lived in Malta since 16 years of age, but the rest of their application was left empty and they had still acquired the right to vote. He said some other applica- tions were unsigned, lacked a date or didn't have a witness signature. "Once again the Electoral Office, an entity that is under the respon- sibility of the Prime Minister has been caught up in a scandal. Mus- cat's government sells citizenship and buys votes," Fenech Adami said. "These are not mistakes but a plan by an Office that falls under the OPM." Beppe Fenech Adami accused the government of 'buying votes' Policeman who made disparaging comments against MP 'requests transfer' MIRIAM DALLI SERGEANT major Eugenio Caruana has requested to be transferred from his post at parliament after the opposi- tion insisted that he should be removed. Caruana was recently de- ployed to parliament duty, un- til the opposition requested his removal. Caruana had made disparaging comments against shadow health minister Clau- dette Buttigieg on Facebook and was later found to have passed other comments against other MPs. But while the opposition called for his removal, Speaker Anglu Farrugia and acting po- lice commissioner Lawrence Cutajar argued that no further action would be taken against the policeman after the latter formally apologized for his ac- tions and also closed down his Facebook account. On Monday evening, Oppo- sition leader Simon Busuttil threatened that the opposi- tion would walk out of parlia- ment until the policeman has been removed. In his ruling, the Speaker "deplored" Busut- til's comments, arguing that the chair had always ensured the safety of all members of parliament. "As the MPs them- selves can attest, security has increased drastically since we moved in the new parliamen- tary building and it's fully han- dled by the police," Farrugia said. As the Speaker was reading out the ruling yesterday, he received fresh correspondence from the acting police com- missioner informing him that Caruana had requested a trans- fer and this had been accepted. Intervening, Busuttil said the Speaker's ruling still left the opposition feel unsafe: "If he's still here, we will walk out. We don't feel protected by the Speaker and you [Farrugia] have a duty to ensure our pro- tection," Busuttil said. The opposition was later re- assured that Caruana was no longer posted to parliament. YOUR FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY www.maltatoday.com.mt