Persons who offer technical advice to ministers must be independent of any political affiliation, Azzjoni Nazzjonali stressed yesterday, saying that consultant’s advice should be chosen according to their professionalism and not on their political background.
AN deputy leader Anglu Xuereb yesterday said that individuals serving in high posts in the public service should be independent and not controlled by their various ministers. “The public service should be driven by people who are appointed by the Public Service Commission as quoted in the Constitution,” Xuereb said.
Xuereb said AN was pledging to remove all foundations and government boards to decrease bureaucracy and control corruption.
Xuereb said that the function and composition of the Public Service Commission should be revised so that its members would not have political affiliations.
He said AN saw this as essential for the PSC to regain its independence. “Since 1971 politicians have stopped believing in having a neutral public service,” Xuereb said, pointing at the date Labour was elected to power under Dom Mintoff.
According to AN, this non-neutral system had contributed to a considerable amount of unnecessary foundations, authorities and bodies especially from 1987 onwards. These, Xuereb said, “have enhanced another form of Public Service, however this time, affiliated with a political party.”
Xuereb said the 1991 reform of the Public Service “had been a means to continue fuelling partisan politics when it gave head departments and other appointed high positions, three-year contracts.”
The AN deputy leader pointed out that different persons working within this new public service were chosen only because of their political background and not because of their professional capacities.
“Regulatory bodies should be amalgamated and they should act more serious on who to employ and control how money is spent,” Xuereb said, insisting that an accountability act should be introduced.
“Parliamentary secretaries and head of departments should be appointed without any political influence. People who are seen as not fulfilling their post must be removed and changed,” Xuereb said.
The AN spokesperson on public service Tonio Mercieca also ruled out any form of positive discrimination in AN’s proposed reforms for the public service. “There should be no fixed quota in recruitment in terms of a person’s sexuality because we believe that in the near future, there will be more women entering the public service on a meritocratic basis.”
Xuereb also reminded people present that a Whistleblowers Act “would protect employers working in the Publice Service who expose corruption or maladministration”, mentioning Alternattiva Demokratika candidate Carmel Cacopardo as a case in question.
Xuereb criticised the extensive amount of workers appointed in the different ministers’ and parliamentary secretaries’ offices. “Even though they act as executives, none of them have the official title as being one and this goes against the Maltese Constitution… In a country full of lawyers, nobody says a word, including the Opposition which is expected to benefit from this situation when it will be its turn.”

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