Police Commissioner Lawrence Cutajar Opens Up About The One Moment He Considered Resigning
Police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar has faced significant pressure to resign since the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, with critics accusing him of failing to safeguard the late journalist and of not investigating alleged government corruption.
Now, in an editorial in the police magazine, Cutajar has admitted he considered resigning at one point – when he saw police officer Simon Schembri in hospital shortly after his arm had to be amputated in the wake of a hit-and-run incident.
“I remember going to hospital and seeing the state he was in and crying for him and his family,” he said. “In that moment in time, I felt that I should carry part of the blame because an anti-police environment had been fermented, with certain sectors of society directing their criticism at me. I went home and spent some time mulling it over.”
Police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar with police officer Simon Schembri
“A few days later, I visited Simon Schembri at the ITU but he was resting and I didn’t want to wake him. When he woke up, I asked him if he recognised me and his response remains marked in my mind till this day. He told me these precise words: ‘How can I not recognize you, Sir? You love the man in the street so much and you do so much for us.’”
“I cried in silence afterwards but his words gave me the courage I needed to continue my work.”
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