Christian Grima, the lawyer being sued for libel by disgraced former prime minister Joseph Muscat, emerged from court today telling The Shift he was confident that “the truth will emerge in the end”.
Muscat initiated the court case in May 2021 over a Facebook post by Grima captioned “What happened to her? Your husband blew her up. That’s what happened to her”. The caption was posted in response to euphemistic comments made by the former prime minister’s wife Michelle about journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination.
The case was dropped in December 2021 after Muscat failed to appear in court three consecutive times but it has since been reopened.
Grima said, “We will present the evidence and summon all the witnesses necessary to substantiate our defence of this libel action before summoning Muscat back on the stand to continue with his testimony.”
During cross-examination, Muscat claimed that the Facebook post could only be interpreted as accusing him directly of the murder. He said that the Daphne Caruana Galizia public inquiry “found that I had no involvement in the murder”.
While the public inquiry did not find Muscat personally accountable, it did find that the State, under Muscat’s premiership, was responsible for the murder by creating a “culture of impunity” in which it was committed.
Muscat went on to claim “not even his worst critics” had ever said he was a murderer and that no one in parliament had accused him of being involved in the Caruana Galizia assassination.
Muscat said he did not remember who the Police Commissioner was during the assassination when asked. The court pointed out it was Lawrence Cutajar, who has been widely ridiculed for his inaction on various cases.
When asked about his former chief of staff Keith Schembri, Muscat said he still trusted him “as a person”. Schembri has been arrested over charges of money laundering, criminal conspiracy, accountancy crimes, fraud, false testimony and forgery.
Muscat claimed that while he had critiqued Schembri on several occasions, he could not have stopped “things which he did not know about”, despite Schembri’s testimony that he kept Muscat “informed of everything”.
During the cross-examination, Muscat was also asked if he suffered from any medical conditions. He confirmed that he suffered from a condition which caused him to faint but that this had only happened once publicly.
The government had shirked common practice and failed to inform the public of Muscat’s ailment when he had fainted at an event in which he was speaking. The event happened two days before Caruana Galizia’s assassination.
The reopened case is presided over by Magistrate Victor Axiak, with Pawlu Lia assisting Joseph Muscat and Carl Grech assisting Christian Grima.
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Kif tkunu fiz-zifna staqsuh ghal liema raguni fetah trio groupchat ma’ Schembri u l-allegat mandant nhar is-6 ta’ Dicembru 2017? ezattament l-ghada tal-arresti taparsi ghal gharrieda fit-Tinda tal-Patata.
Next trophy for the most corrupt pm malta ever had
THE LIAR FROM MAFIAMALTA
Pawlu Lia is trying to keep the incisive questions from Muscat.
The Magistrate keeps telling Pawlu Lia to keep off.
Muscat even forgets who was the police commissioner when Daphne was murdered.
The stress is showing.
Waiting for the question whose answer from Muscat will be , Refuse to answer because it will incriminate him.
What happens if Muscat is caught lying , telling a different story from what he stated under oath in a different case?
The fact that the artful dodger claimed he could ?not remember? who the police commissioner was during the DGC murder investigation is a classic Freudian tick, elicited under the pressure of cross examination. Of course he remembers Lawrence Cutajar and his gross incompetence, if not outright cover up of a murder case. How can any political leader, worth his salt, not remember who was in such a key role, during one of the most important criminal investigations in the history of Malta? Muscat is a master manipulator, he is no gross incompetent. He?s too sneakily intelligent to forget that fact. He?s a Machiavellian snake, not a Mr Magoo version of the most incompetent political leadership. It?s my belief he feigned forgetfulness when asked about rabbit munching Cutajar, because he knows that that line of questioning is dangerous. That was an unconscious tick that the defence should and must exploit to the hilt. That snake Muscat?s time is running out. Tick tock Jus tick tock!
Veru wiccu u l warani l istess dal ipokrita. Kief ghandu l wicc jghid diskors bhal dan. L bierah qal ukoll li hu l vitma fil kaz tal vitals. Jekk qed jahseb li ser jibqa jitnejek bil gustizja ta din l art infakru li tezisti gustizja Divina.
Very well said. Well done.??
Soon, he will start to faint again.
Except for the fact, now known by everybody, that he only opens his mouth to lie, it wouldn?t be inconceivable to forget which P.C. it was; there were so many of them.
Posthom il habs ghall ghomorhom la ma ghadiex legali l-forka.
Did they hide so many things as all of them have a finger in the pie ? What a shame they all smile while on camera when there is nothing to smile about . Shame on all those concerned.
So many excuses of forgetfulness and illnesses basically he is hiding behind his lies acting like a spoiled child.