Whenever I watch documentaries about popular uprisings against dictatorships I always end up wondering about those special forces, elite or otherwise, who are called upon to defend the dictator/politician from the crowds. When not in uniform do these soldiers have a life? Do they go home and bring bread to the table to a family that is presumably also suffering under the present regime? What keeps them ticking till the end? What hidden power helps them raise their bayonets or guns against the people who are intent to bring about change?
So much for the troops defending the likes of Ceausescu from the rabble. Jose Herrera seems to have believed that he might need protection of his own from the ‘rabble’ calling for truth and justice outside parliament in November and December. By his own admission there was no particular threat to his well-being (his being an insignificant enabling member of the extended cabinet must have had much to do with this).
And yet Jose’ deemed it fit to dig into the public’s pockets to adorn his entourage with gorillas to ensure his safety. Yes, you read that right. By way of direct order Jose’ did what our Labour politicians seem to do quite well and appropriated some public money for his own imaginary needs.
Now I know that as in some countries of dubious democratic record, our politicians love to be surrounded with the occasional knucklehead or two – it seems to add to the street cred and helps keep away the fawning fans from touching their holy habits. Jose’s extravagance though goes a step further.
First of all he did not need the security because there was no apparent threat. Second of all even if he did, this did not mean he could fish into the public box and spend 19,000 euros without so much of a “please”.
This happens in Muscat’s Malta (now inherited by dithering more of the same Bobby). Muscat’s Malta that so proudly proclaims to have kicked off reforms to please (among others) the Venice commission. I wonder if these reforms will change the manner of appointment by Decree (of His Holiness Owen) as we witnessed in the case of Jose’s daughter.
Remember how Owen justified yet another public appointment by private decree?
The new Commissioner for Law and daughter of the Minister for the Environment Jose Herrera, Martina Herrera, will earn roughly €11,000 per year, and was selected by the Ministry for Justice Owen Bonnici without any other applicants, the latter has confirmed. The Minister clarified that the appointment of such a role, as stipulated in law, was always placed under his remit’s discretion.
It’s all in the family isn’t it? We weren’t shocked in 2017 so why should we be shocked now. After all the Herrera family’s habit of living off public money is only one example of the hundreds you will find under this administration.
That, my friends, is how corruption feeds itself.
