Unlearnt lessons from 1921 self-government colonial constitution - Micallef Goggi vs Mifsud et : an audacious judgement

Abstract

Introduction: The first self-governing colonial constitution under the British - that of 1921 that 'provided Malta with a full measure of "responsible government" in a genuinely dyarchical system' - is not only a historic document in itself but one that is still vibrant and alive as several of its provisions have been absorbed in the current 1964 independence constitution. In its cloned 1964 version, it thus continues to be very much a living instrument. The same applies to the case-law delivered thereunder. That apart, the first 1921 self-government constitution is also remembered, inter alia, for being a constitution that was not only short lived and for providing for a bicameral legislature, but for a ground-breaking court case that ended up before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and necessitated the United Kingdom Parliament's intervention to enact legislation specifically for the colony of Malta. It is, indeed, not a run-of-the-mill case but one that has laid down important constitutional principles valid to this day and age even though, unfortunately, it was ignored completely by the Civil Court. First Hall, and the Constitutional Court in their respective judgments concerning the Nationalist Party's 'two seat' cases.