‘Disgraced Ministers’ Should Not Be Given Terminal Benefits Says Arnold Cassola
Ministers forced to resign “in disgrace” should not be given terminal benefits, independent politician Arnold Cassola said following the news of Clayton Bartolo’s resignation.
Cassola explained that such benefits should be should be reserved for Ministers who have terminated their post “honourably”.
This statement comes the Times of Malta reported that his wife, Amanda Muscat, is being investigated by Malta’s money laundering authority for being given €50,000 in suspected kickbacks by a company linked to a Malta Tourism Authority contractor.
“We already have the absurd situation of Joseph Muscat, a crooked ex-Prime Minister who received a 120,000 euro terminal benefit and is still being financed by the taxpayer to this day,” he stated, adding that other “disgraced” ministers have indeed benefited from such a situation.
Cassola thanked the Standards Commissioner for his work, but highlighted the fact that ethical standards should be upheld, meaning that politicians who have betrayed the trust of the people “should not be compensated for their betrayal”.
Bartolo and his wife have been under intense scrutiny this last month after a Standards Commissioner report found that the Tourism Minister gave Muscat a consultancy job that she did not do.
Do you agree with Cassola?