Gonzi has assumed responsibility in oil procurement case - Muscat

Labour leader Joseph Muscat said this morning that the prime minister, in endorsing Austin Gatt’s version of his meeting with oil trader George Farrugia, had become become directly responsible for this case. Dr Muscat was referring to Lawrence Gonzi's comments yesterday that he stood by a declaration made by Dr Gatt that he never discussed oil tenders with Mr Farrugia - the person granted a presidential pardon to reveal information on the alleged illegal kickbacks. Speaking at a press conference in Rabat, Dr Muscat said that Dr Gatt had given the impression that he only met Mr Farrugia in run-of-the-mill constituency meetings, but the e-mails published by the Sunday Times indicated otherwise. He could understand that Dr Gonzi would give Dr Gatt the benefit of the doubt after so many years of friendship, but by going a step further and standing by his version, the prime minister was making himself directly responsible, Dr Muscat said. Dr Muscat said the yardstick of whether the granting of the pardon was a good decision or not would be based on the testimony in court and on whether the police needed this information to strengthen their cases in court. In his reaction to The Sunday...