Jun 04 - Chief Minister On GSD Parking Claims: “Clinton Is Wrong, He Is Lying”
The Chief Minister has replied to yesterday’s statement by Roy Clinton on the MidTown car park spaces:
“Roy Clinton is wrong, he is lying and just throwing mud
“Roy Clinton is as usual lying to the public, applying to everyone the same low moral standards by which he discharges his functions as a Parliamentarian.
“First of all, Mr Clinton is aware of my ownership of spaces at Midtown Car Park because I told him about it. He did not need to search the public register of land to find out that which I publicly told him.
“Secondly, when I bought my parking spaces at MidTown I paid the asking price. I did not decide what the asking price for my spaces should be, as Mr Clinton implies. In fact, Mr Clinton does not say that I actually bought two parking spaces, not one. That important fact seems to have conveniently passed him by!
“Thirdly, Mr Clinton has not disclosed that the designs of the Car Park changed after I had contracted for the space in question. The designs later changed to allow a wider turning circle for coaches in the ground floor. It was that change which altered the configuration of the stairs and lifts on every floor. I was not consulted on that change, which was technically required and which happened after I had signed the contracts for my space.
“Fourthly, two parking spaces with the same effect were bought by a very, very, senior member of the GSD, and Mr Clinton either doesn't know that or pretends not to know that.
“The fact is I have never taken advantage of my position as Chief Minister in any way, I never will and Mr Clinton's lies will not change that.
“Indeed, I have happily provided Mr Clinton with the information he has sought because I know that what he is saying is untrue, false and typical of him and the GSD - scratching the bottom of the barrel to try to sling mud at me and my hard fought for reputation. They did it in 2011 and they are doing it again now. The public see through their mud-slinging.
“The fact of the matter is that Mr Clinton has got this as wrong as he gets most things.
“Although he presents himself as clever and bookish, Mr Clinton's analysis invariably turns out to be inaccurate and wrong in just about everything he does.
“Indeed, as a banker who sent millions of pounds of his client's monies to Bernard Madoff, the biggest fraudster in history, Mr Clinton's judgment is no doubt in question already.
“Moreover, as an accountant who gets wrong the difference between capital and recurrent expenditure, as he did in relation to the accounts of the Gibraltar University, Mr Clinton's professional competence is so questionable that he would be hard pressed to give evidence in any court matter as an expert witness as his credibility would be destroyed in the first five minutes just by reference to his abysmal performance in Parliament on these issues.
“It is clear to me that the GSD under Keith Azopardi is now nastier and dirtier than ever before. The GSD have always been the nasty party in Gibraltar. Now they appear to be out doing themselves in throwing mud. They issue statements in public and have to follow up with apologies in private to the people they mention. All they are interested in doing is throwing dirt to try to deflect from the excellent work we have done on the public finances, the economy and Brexit.
“I am in good company, however, as Mr Clinton has also attacked the integrity of the Trustees of Community Care. Their crime has been to work hard to ensure that our resident elderly citizens get their household cost allowance without fail.
“Mr Clinton attacks the integrity of a man who is beyond reproach like Financial Secretary Albert Mena. Mr Mena's crime is to be an outstanding professional who can do a better job as an accountant than Mr Clinton with his eyes closed, and to have the job that Mr Clinton has probably craved all his life.
“Now he repeatedly attacks my integrity. My crime is to have beaten the GSD at the elections, to work as hard as I can to defend our community and represent the interests of working people. To that I happily plead guilty and it is an offence against Mr Clinton's ego that I intend to commit again.
“But Mr Clinton's repeated attacks on everyone's integrity - casting assertions like confetti - are not a way to do politics. This is just the way to do gutter politics, which is not what this community needs as we seek to deal with Brexit and other challenges.
“What Mr Clinton needs to do is to crawl back into the gutter as soon as possible and nurse his bruised ego and stop attacking everyone's integrity. His lies won't be believed and his mud won't stick to anyone but himself.”
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