The parliamentary secretary says he is now ‘functioning better’ after seeking help for depression: ‘a stigma that affects 33,000’
Matthew Vella
Mario Galea, the parliamentary secretary in the ministry of health, has refuted suggestions that he is unfit for political office due to a recent episode of depression for which he had to seek medical help.
Galea also denied having a “drinking problem”, after Labour whip Joe Mizzi last week suggested on daytime TV show Bongu that the Nationalist party “should not have allowed Galea to drink whisky” prior to last Thursday’s debate on a Labour motion.
Speculation on Galea’s health was rife after the former PN whip mistakenly voted with the Labour opposition on a motion on the controversial contract for the Delimara power station extension.
Galea was not allowed to correct his vote as per parliamentary procedure, but Speaker Michael Frendo – still in his second sitting – prompted a Labour walk-out after deciding to go for a re-vote instead of carrying the motion for Labour.
Galea yesterday admitted to having passed through a depressive phase after the 2008 elections, and that he was on anti-depressants.
“I cannot drink on these pills… I may have had one whisky, and a coffee at the parliament’s bar. But I did call Joe Mizzi about what he said about me on TV, and he apologised straight away.”
MaltaToday is reliably informed that Opposition leader Joseph Muscat also took issue with Mizzi over the latter’s televised remark.
Galea meanwhile said he was very tired on the day of the parliamentary vote, and had spent the entire day at work, without even eating, and that his stress had probably led to him voting erroneously with the Opposition.
But he rejected suggestions that his mental state was rendering him unfit for political office.
“I passed through an episode of depression after my uncle died and my father was admitted to hospital. These are things we don’t choose for us to happen, and it’s a problem affecting 33,000 people in Malta. It shouldn’t be a stigma,” Galea said, for whom mental healthcare forms part of his ministerial portfolio.
“Mental health often gets neglected by sufferers of depression because of the stigma, and they never seek help,” Galea, a nurse by profession, said. “I was able to identify the symptoms of depression and have myself seen by a psychiatrist. I have availed myself of the necessary car, and today I go to work, I am feeling better and I am functioning well,” Galea said.
But his blunder in parliament last Thursday fuelled speculation, both within Labour and Nationalist circles, that the junior minister was unable to carry out his duty well.
Nationalist MPs who spoke under condition of anonymity with MaltaToday say that Galea was “briefed thoroughly” on how he had to vote. Other Labour MPs witnessed the parliamentary secretary “having a drink” on the evening.
“It was one of those days,” Galea – whose offer to resign last week was declined by the Prime Minister – told MaltaToday. “Everyone was shouting and talking in parliament, and I got confused. You can easily make a mistake if you are not paying attention.”
Earlier this year, Galea’s chauffeur was arraigned in court for wilfully damaging the ministerial car. He had first reported the attack on the car to the police, claiming vandals had deliberately damaged the parliamentary secretary’s vehicle.
Yesterday Galea said he was declaring that he had nothing to do with this incident. “I want to clarify a misconception brought about by your report,” referring to MaltaToday’s report that Galea’s chauffeur had admitted to having damaged the car.
“I had nothing to do with this incident and it was not me who was driving this car. This young man had just broken up with his girlfriend and was then involved in a car accident, as he admitted in court.”
Parliamentary procedure does not allow Galea to correct his vote, but last Thursday the Speaker allowed deputy Prime Minister Tonio Borg to raise a point of order, in which he claimed that Labour MP Justyne Caruana had voted with the government.
Controversially, Michael Frendo suspended the sitting instead of declaring the result of the vote as had been noted by the Clerk of the House. Claiming that the audio recordings of the sitting had been inaudible, he then ruled that the motion would go for a re-vote, prompting a walk-out by Labour.
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