Alex Agius Saliba Calls For EU Investigation Into PN For Failing To Submit Financial Records
Labour Deputy Leader and MEP Alex Agius Saliba has called for an EU investigation into the Nationalist Party (PN) for not submitting its financial accounts, as per the law, since Bernard Grech became Opposition Leader.
Agius Saliba wrote to the President and Secretary General of the European People’s Party (EPP), calling for a probe into shortcomings within the PN, one of the EPP’s member parties.
The PN has failed to submit audited accounts for the past four years, as well as a record of donations for the last three years. Legislation introduced by the Labour Government in 2016 requires political parties to disclose the names of companies and individuals donating more than €7,000.
“One cannot claim that the government is not doing enough to protect the rule of law while at the same time refusing to disclose who is financing the structures through which it operates!” Agius Saliba commented, emphasising that the timely submission of donation records is essential to ensuring the highest standards of accountability and transparency.
“Our voters deserve to understand the motives behind our political positions or lack thereof, and legislations on party financing are meant to address this basic democratic right and allow our voters to make an informed choice. It is only by adhering to such high standards that we, as parties from the political centre, may set ourselves apart from the up and running extremists which are competing for political space with their shady, short sighted agendas and slogans,” the letter reads.
Agius Saliba argued that holding centrist parties to the “highest standards of transparency and accountability” is essential transparency is necessary to fight growing extremist
Agius Saliba also pointed out that the PN’s credibility in maintaining financial records is further undermined by the fact that its treasurer, Veronica Perici Calascione, is the daughter of Deputy Leader Alex Perici Calascione. This close family connection between two high-ranking individuals gives the impression that the party’s finances are being managed as if it were a small family business. The PN’s failure to submit its financial records must also be seen in the context of the fact that when in government, it refused to implement any legislation to regulate party financing, despite numerous recommendations on the matter.
“It is evident that the PN is doing everything possible to delay and withhold the publication of its financial records. They tried to blame auditors for the delay in publishing the audited accounts, but they don’t need an auditor to tell them how much they received in donations and from whom!” he said.
This comes after Karl Stagno Navarro – who worked with the PN for 12 years before later switching over to the Labour Party called for an inquiry into the party’s financial administration, alleging that years of mismanagement have left former staff members with missing National Insurance (NI) payments.
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