Watch: PL Whip Insists Vote Against Jean Paul Sofia Public Inquiry Wasn’t A Mistake
Malcolm Paul Agius Galea may have admitted he made a mistake when he voted against a public inquiry into Jean Paul Sofia’s death but government whip Andy Ellul doesn’t think likewise.
Lovin Malta approached Ellul outside Parliament this week to ask whether he shares Agius Galea’s opinions, but the whip’s response was clear.
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“That’s his personal opinion. Everyone is entitled to air his opinion. My opinion is that the parliamentary group was right in voting in that manner,” said Ellul, whose job it is to ensure PL MPs vote the way they do.
Alison Zerafa Civelli, the Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government, agreed with him and said she doesn’t regret voting the way she did.
“We felt that was the best decision at that point in time,” she said. “Back then, following discussions, we felt that [voting against the public inquiry] should be the way forward and that if we were to take another decision, it would be after the magisterial inquiry.”
Although every PL MP voted against a public inquiry last July, Prime Minister Robert Abela performed a stunning U-turn a few days later and announced that a public inquiry would in fact be held.
The magisterial inquiry was concluded a few days later and five people – two developers, two contractors and an architect – have been charged with Sofia’s involuntary homicide.
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Malcolm Paul Agius Galea recently became the first PL MP to admit his original vote was a mistake.
“Sometimes in politics, you must work as a politician and not as a doctor or a lawyer. You need to vote with your mind, rather than your heart. In this case, things were way different than what we thought they would be,” he said. “We were legally correct but politically wrong.”
Do you think PL MPs should have voted in favour of a public inquiry?
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