Prime Minister Robert Abela has confirmed that his entire Cabinet is under criminal investigation for the misuse of public funds on social media.

“We’ve heard your nice remarks,” Prime Minister Robert Abela said to PN MP Karol Aquilina in Parliament yesterday. “Thank you for putting the whole Cabinet under investigation again.”

“This is the second time in recent weeks that we are subject to investigation. This is the kind of cooperation shown from the Opposition.”

In the previous magisterial inquiry in April, Abela was investigated for the murder of migrants at sea following a police report filed by NGO Repubblika.

The resulting 420-page inquiry cleared Prime Minister Robert Abela and AFM crew of homicide charges in the case of the death of at least five migrants at sea.

The latest investigation was prompted by a damning report by the Standards Commissioner, which found “widespread misuse of public resources” by ministers and parliamentary secretaries.

Incomplete figures made public some years ago that showed at least €1.2 million were spent by ministries on social media over a 55-month period despite most ministries not having official Facebook pages.

Several ministers and parliamentary secretaries have been using public money and resources to boost their personal pages, giving them an electoral advantage over other MPs and blurring the lines between their partisan and official roles.

Following a complaint by Lovin Malta, the Standards Commissioner confirmed the practices and passed on his investigation to the National Audit Office who in turn passed it onto the police to investigate.

A magisterial inquiry is now underway by Doreen Clarke.

“If the Prime Minister and his Cabinet are caught stealing funds, they deserve to be under a magisterial inquiry,” MP Aquilina responded.

Robert Abela’s reaction can be seen in this video from the 11-minute mark.