Freezing order on Yorgen Fenech assets lifted; PN says minister, AG should resign
Justice Minister Jonathan Attard and Attorney General Victoria Buttigieg should resign after it was reported that a freezing order against Yorgen Fenech has been lifted "due to the(ir) severe failings", the Nationalist Party said Monday.The PN was re
Justice Minister Jonathan Attard and Attorney General Victoria Buttigieg should resign after it was reported that a freezing order against Yorgen Fenech has been lifted "due to the(ir) severe failings", the Nationalist Party said Monday.
The PN was referring to a report in Times of Malta that the Criminal Court revoked a freezing order against Fenech, who is accused, among other things, of being the mastermind behind the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
This "is a clear confirmation of Victoria Buttigieg's incompetence and misconduct as Attorney General. This recent development is even more serious when considering that the proceedings before the Criminal Court involve Yorgen Fenech," the party said.
Fenech's assets were frozen following his arrest in 2019 for alleged complicity in journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder. He denies the charges.
Judge Edwina Grima ordered the cancellation of the freezing order earlier this month, The Times reports.
A public notice about the decision was posted on the Asset Recovery Bureau's website.
Under a recently introduced legal regime, the attorney general must quantify the amount of assets that should be frozen, depending on the crime the suspect is accused of.
This does not appear to have been done by the necessary deadline, leading the judge to cancel the blanket freezing order Fenech has been subject to since November 2019, the report adds.
The PN said that this grave situation is also the result of poor legislation that Attard, as Minister for Justice, passed through Parliament and his blind trust in Victoria Buttigieg.
"Therefore, the PN expects Jonathan Attard and Victoria Buttigieg to immediately take responsibility and step down from their respective positions". This is the only honourable path left for them, the PN said.
The PN said that if Victoria Buttigieg remains in the role of Attorney General, she will be abusing the constitutional independence she enjoys, and her serious shortcomings will continue to undermine the Attorney General's office, leading to a poor administration of justice.
The PN said that it had warned that the changes proposed by the Government regarding anti-money laundering laws were rushed and would weaken institutions, benefitting only criminals. The news revealed by the Times of Malta confirms this, the PN said.
Now everyone knows that the priority of the Labour Government is to appease those involved in corruption, money laundering, and abuse of power, the PN said.
In a separate statement, civil society group Repubblika said the Attorney General failed to apply amendments to the law as introduced by the government.
The government changed the law thatr regulates the freezing of asste of people accused of serious crimes, changes which Repubblika said had taken away a weapon that was used against organised crime.
Repubblika said that it had spoken up against the law and appealed to the government not to introduce it, as the changes would have been of benefit to people accused of serious crimes. But the government ploughed ahead and, after the law was changed, it was up to the AG to ensure that it countinued to be used against serious crimes.
The AG did not apply the law and, as a result of this, Fenech was given access to assets that had previously been frozen, Repubblika said.
This is a serious failure by the Maltese state. Attard had changed the law and Buttigieg did not apply it, it added.
If this was a genuine mistake, Attard and Buttigieg should resign. If it wasn't, then this is the behaviour of a Mafia State, Repubblika said.
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