In theory political parties are not supposed to receive a donation from anyone in particular beyond €25,000. But political parties designed that law, so they know how to go about it.
The government contracted Captain Morgan to provide illegal off-shore prisons for migrants that have since been brought ashore. There was no earthly reason to do this. It was not necessary for quarantine as there was more than enough space to do that on shore. And it did not help avoiding bringing the migrants on shore because they needed to be brought in at some point anyway.
But it did benefit Captain Morgan’s owners, the Zammit Tabonas. They present this as a public service, but they charged handsomely for it and they also ensured that their assets that would otherwise have been idle because of the shutdown of tourism would make them money even during the pandemic lockdown.
In classic Tangentopoli style they pay the Labour Party back a kickback for benefiting from the public contract.
Yesterday the Labour Party, without bothering to deal with what Evarist Bartolo describes as a political eclipse, asked the public for money and the public happily paid in.
The whole rigmarole of putting up a telethon and raising funds on TV in the heat of summer and in the middle of an embarrassing political crisis was necessary to act as a front for the kickback paid by the Zammit Tabonas which would otherwise not have been possible.
Here’s a tool from the Naxxar committee acknowledging on live TV that he was delivering over €100,000 to the Labour Party on behalf of the Zammit Tabonas “and the suppliers of Captain Morgan”. Which does not surprise me. The Zammit Tabonas will have made sure they didn’t pay the kickback alone but that anyone who rode on the gravy train on the back of imprisoned migrants coughed up their share for the Labour Party.
Truly revolting.
Labour then uses these jamborees for their own hate-fests. Look at this propaganda video featuring Jason Azzopardi. The man is taking risks like no other right now asking questions of the criminal and the corrupt that Evarist Bartolo accuses of darkening the sky in an eclipse. He is in court confronting people who face a lifetime in prison with question many would not dare think, let alone ask.
Given the experience with Daphne Caruana Galizia, the state should be rushing to protect him, provide him with armed escort, make sure he’s safe. And in order to fulfil the state’s obligation of fighting corruption within it, the state should be ensuring he is provided with security resources that do not cooperate with the corrupt, even if they’re wearing a uniform.
Instead they single out Jason Azzopardi for hatred, they lynch him publicly and make him a cause to raise more funds for ammunition to be thrown at him. It’s not enough for them to collect tangenti on the back of public contracts. They also want a cut on the cost of demonising their political rivals and those that inconveniently chase the truth they so desperately seek to hide.
They want money to endanger him and intimidate him.
It’s not that they have not learnt anything from what happened to Daphne. On the contrary they have learnt very well. And they do it again and again.
Meantime notice how the video criticises Adrian Delia for not distancing himself from Jason Azzopardi. They used to do that to Lawrence Gonzi, challenging him to “condemn” Daphne Caruana Galizia which he’d never think of doing. Except that sometimes, depending on what mood happens to be taking him, Adrian Delia does distance himself from Jason Azzopardi and leaves him hanging to dry. Now when did he do that before?