There is little doubt in my mind that the all-out war within the Labour Party is far more interesting than, for example, the illegal reflagging of fishing vessels operated by Azzopardi Fisheries.
Nonetheless, it is Azzopardi Fisheries that we want to take a look at today rather than the ranting and internecine fighting taking place within the MLP.
Just in case no one has realised, the fishy story goes like this:
Two unlicensed purse-seiner fishing vessels owned by Azzopardi Fisheries were charged in Libya with illegal import and swapping identity, after allegedly changing flag from Bolivian to Libyan in Malta; and taking the place of two separate vessels which are licensed by international authorities to fish for bluefin tuna. The Abdi Baba and Cevahir were impounded in the Libyan port of Al Khums in the past weeks, after sailing from Malta on 4 May.
Last Wednesday, MaltaToday revealed that Abdi Baba and Cevahir had been purchased from Turkey by AJD Tuna Ltd, a subsidiary of Azzopardi Fisheries, in partnership with French associates. They then sailed to Malta under the Bolivian flag and entered the Grand Harbour on 21 April. Investigations carried out by Greenpeace International and the World Wildlife Fund revealed that the flag state had no records of either vessel being registered with Bolivia; and yet, both received permission to dock from the Valletta Port Authority.
Photographic evidence also suggests that the same two stateless vessels were then re-registered under the Libyan flag, with their names changed to “Manara I” and “Manara II”, in order to be passed off as two different fishing vessels, also owned by AJD Tuna LTD, which are licensed to fish for bluefin tuna by the International Convention for Conservation for Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT).
Okay, those are the facts.
A normal journalist who does not have a problem with writing about politicians and news reportage would have asked the following questions:
Why did we not hear anything from fisheries minister George Pullicino?
Will Charles Azzopardi’s licence to operate fish farms be terminated?
How serious is the EU taking this incident?
Why didn’t the Valletta tower notice what was happening?
How long has this been happening?
What financial benefits are being reaped from this illegal activity?
The fact is that Transport Minister Austin Gatt is investigating this scandal and the interesting flag-swapping, but not the fisheries minister. George Pullicino is saying little or nothing about the case.
Pullicino is sort of waiting and seeing. And why should we bother Pullicino? After all what does a fisheries minister have to do with a fishing vessel?
Now, it is of course a great coincidence that both Mr Pullicino and Mr Charles Azzopardi are good friends. Even travelling together that is, and spending quality time together appears to be high on their agenda.
Now just for one lonely minute imagine, if the fisheries minister was someone else, for example a Labour minister, and Charles Azzopardi was a Labour stooge. Then, I am quite sure the story would have read something like this:
SCANDAL, SCANDAL. AND BY YOUR SWEET BUTTOCKS, A BIG SCANDAL.
But you see, George Pullicino is not a Labour minister and Charles Azzopardi is not a Labour stooge. So the only story we will see featured in that great newspaper In-Nazzjon should be as follows:
JUST A JOKE: AZZOPARDI SWAPS FLAGS ON FISHING VESSELS… HA HA HA.
Well, in reality, the flag-swapping and Azzopardi Fisheries’ alleged intention to circumvent international legislation to be able to fish more lucrative bluefin tuna is as serious as someone who, for example, intends building a hotel in the middle of Kappara roundabout without a friggin’ roundabout.
If that really did take place, I mean building the hotel in the middle of the roundabout, I am sure that the minister responsible for MEPA would take all his guns and fire them at the culprit.
But George is not in any way going to take out his bazooka and fire it at Charlie Azzopardi, affably known as il-poodle. One does not shoot pot shots at friends.
I mean, why should he do such a thing to someone whom he treats as a friend and whom he has accompanied in the past on sailing expeditions to Sicily?
Now, if for one minute this opinion is suggesting that George Pullicino does not wish to distance himself from Charles Azzopardi, then I’ll be damned. George Pullicino is far too upright, too principled, and far too serious to even entertain such a scurrilous idea.
So there you go, the flag-swapping incident must be a figment of our imagination. George Pullicino has great friends. And finally Charles il-poodle Azzopardi is bluefin tuna’s best friend.
The Mistra saga goes on. The latest is the revelation of the man who leased the land from Mr Green, I mean JPO, that he knew who the man behind the leak to Labour is.
Really and truly, who cares? What we really care is that Mistra bay has been saved and that JPO lied through his teeth, and I will go repeating this for the next five years… unless, that is, the good Lord decides to call me and kick me off into some lost paradise.
Which takes me to the billboard at Addolorata cemetery informing lobotomised voters about the brand new number of tombs that were made available by the Nationalist government. Gee, I am impressed!
It is of course particularly tantalising info, which falls within the parameters that governs the political strategy and targets of the Nationalist party. The mission statement in fact reads something like this: If you cannot make them happy when they’re alive, at least make them jolly and comfortable when dead!
X’ma nhobbkhomx!
