Bonnici’s vacant seat may open way for technocrat in Parliament

Should his appointment be confirmed, Josef Bonnici’s appointment to the European Court of Auditors will mean that he will make way for a new face in Parliament. To accept the appointment Bonnici will have to resign his parliamentary seat, effectively ending his party political career.
Having been elected through a by-election, Bonnici’s vacant seat would have to be filled by co-option.
This prospect gives the Nationalist Party the chance to co-opt a technocrat to possibly take a position within Cabinet should the need be felt. Should the government go for that option, the possibility that someone with competence in financial matters could be appointed will arise. That would relieve the Prime Minister of the finance ministry, PN activists yesterday told this newspaper. Bonnici’s departure will further weaken the PN bench’s competence in financial matters.
The former finance minister’s vacant parliamentary seat is the third for the PN in the space of a month. Only last week Michael Asciak was elected to Parliament after Eddie Fenech Adami’s resignation on the eighth district. In a couple week’s time another by-election will need to be held on the ninth district to fill in the vacancy former foreign minister Joe Borg will leave behind after taking up his post in the EU Commission.