Judge: remove two watchdog members

The judge facing an impeachment motion, Lino Farrugia Sacco, yesterday filed a constitutional case demanding that two members of the judiciary’s watchdog be removed as he could not be guaranteed a fair hearing. He claimed there was a real possibility the process against him would be tainted by bias. Judge Victor Caruana Colombo and Chamber of Advocates President Reuben Balzan, he said, should not form part of the Commission for the Administration of Justice hearing his case. He alleged a breach of his fundamental human rights and requested compensation. The impeachment process against the judge started after he was rapped by the International Olympic Committee in an investigation over the sale of Olympic tickets last year. Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco filed the application against Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, the Attorney General Peter Grech and the Commission, arguing that his demand was “not a capricious preliminary plea”. Dr Balzan, he claimed, had a close affiliation with the Nationalist Party’s deputy leader, Simon Busuttil, who had publicly condemned him over this case with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi. The Prime Minister and Dr Busuttil had also publicly requested his...