Lies, damned lies and transparent audits

On Friday the Times of Malta reminded us of a few deeply worrying facts connected to Sai Mizzi and her position and remuneration. But what hit me most was the reminder that way back when the Panama Papers scandal came to light the prime minister had announced that an audit of Konrad Mizzi’s financial affairs was being carried out by an internationally renowned firm.Joseph Muscat seemed to imply that when the audit would be held it would exonerate Konrad Mizzi of any wrongdoing and all would be well in this land. Because this is the way prime ministers do such things—they take it for granted that their chosen assistants and ministers will be declared guilt-free even if the whole world, except the Maltese rubber-stamping parliament, thought otherwise. The audit was intended to clear the culprits of what was declared hogwash by the same prime minister. In today’s world we can define transparency—that oh-so-lauded prerequisite intrinsic to democracy—as the invisibility of matter. Back then the whole audit affair stank—not just because you can’t very well audit something hidden or intended to be hidden from view. It was also wrong because we were never told who was carrying out the...