Il-Kollettiv wants reform of electoral system, creation of transparency register for politicians
Il-Kollettiv reacts to EU Commission report on Rule of Law with proposals intended to improve transparency and have representative governance
The European Commission's Rule of Law report confirms that Malta “deserves serious, transparent, and representative governance”, il-Kollettiv said as it called for constitutional reform.
Il-Kollettiv deputy secretary Cyrus Engerer, a former Labour MEP, said the constitutional reform process initiated by former president George Vella stalled in 2019 should be reactivated.
The organisation was reacting to the European Commission’s assessment of the rule of law in Malta released on Wednesday.
“This [constitutional] reform is necessary to have a modern, strong democracy that truly is representative of the entire society,” Engerer said, noting that in her inaugural speech, President Myriam Spiteri Debono said this process must not continue to be undermined by the two big parties.
The European Commission directly referenced parliamentary and state broadcasting reforms in its report apart from other changes.
“We believe that before the next general election, various reforms including those of the electoral system, the party financing law, the operation of parliament and of the executive, as well as the broadcasting sector are essential,” Engerer said.
He called for increased transparency in governance of the country. “Not only do citizens lack organised access to how they can participate in the legislative process, as noted by the European Commission, but at every level of governance, even journalists are deprived of information and public documents that are of interest to anyone living in Malta,” he said.
Il-Kollettiv said Freedom of Information requests should be taken seriously by the government and the authorities. The group also believes that a transparency register should be introduced for politicians to log all meetings held with people and lobby groups.
Wayne Flask, secretary of Il-Kollettiv, emphasised the need to reintroduce a degree of sobriety in governance. “The Maltese government cannot ignore the recommendations made by public inquiries, which sometimes it has even requested itself. It is shameful how three years after the inquiry was published following the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, practically all the recommendations remain only on paper without any action or implementation,” Flask said.
Il-Kollettiv called for immediate reform of the Permanent Commission Against Corruption, which, according to the European Commission, has yet to yield any tangible results.
“To have serious, transparent, and representative governance, we believe we cannot wait any longer for Malta to have a Human Rights Commission and an essential change in the Whistleblower Act to protect all those who fight against wrongdoing,” Flask said.
Il-Kollettiv proposed several short-term measures that include the launch of an electoral reform process; a serious reform of the party financing law; a broadcasting reform; the creation of a Human Rights Commission under the President or the Ombudsperson; and a suitable protection for whistleblowers.
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