Robert Arrigo for Deputy Leader

Robert Arrigo has been working for the good of the P.N. for a long time, even during times when things weren't that good for the party and for himself. If politics is to described as a service to the people, then Robert is one who has definitely excelled in that. His way of looking at politics has always been that of being close to the people. And, knowing what the needs of people are, is of utmost importance in politics, as there is nothing in life that is more important than one's own well being in society. As a party for the people, of the people, I believe that Robert really epitomizing what our party stands for.

His view of politics is that we need to understand people, empathize with their needs. Visiting people in their homes is a must in politics, as it gives a politician an idea of what people go through in their daily lives. A politician who is capable of doing this, is even more capable of bringing people together in a political party. This is very much need at this point in time for the P.N., after a leadership election which was intense to say the least. And, I am sure that Robert fits the bill in bring people together. 

To bring people back together, what is needed is someone who is capable of communicating with others, as Robert is surely capable of doing, as one could see from his popularity in the 9th and 10th district. And, I believe that having him as Deputy Leader on party affairs is what the P.N. need at this point in time to bring togetherness back to the party. 

Moreover, Roberts organizational experience, as we can all see in his past business experience and his position as Sliema mayor, will come handy for the P.N. to restructure itself further. A lot of good work has been done during these past 4 years, especially in the party's finances, and it is  important that we have people who could continue to enforce the good work that has already been done.   

    

On honesty and democracy: the P.N. leadership election result

I consider honesty and integrity as important in politics, as it should be in everything we do. However, there is another aspect to politics which we should all cherish, and work for, which is democracy. One of the reasons that I did not want Adrian Delia as leader of the P.N. was because of the allegations that were being said about him. Allegations are allegation, as there is no proof to say whether they are true or false. However, allegations are also a liability to any politician, and Delia is no different in this regard. And, it is for this reason that I have always held that he should clear his name, as not to embarrass the party. My opinion has not charged in this regard since then. I still believe in the necessity of transparency.

On the other hand, I believe that democracy is as important as ethics in politics. Democracy guarantees that the will of the people is respected. Democracy also ensures that minorities are not sidelined by the majority. And, this is even more the case when considering that nearly half of the voters in the election for leader last Saturday voted for Chris Said not for Adrian Delia. This obviously means that Delia, as the new leader of the P.N., needs to ensure that he brings back to the fold those who did not vote for him, and who went as far as to tear up their membership of the party. This is the first test for Delia as the P.N. leader. There are two of things he needs to do to bring back these people to the fold, and if he doesn't  do so, he would definitely fail to bring the party back to its feet again. The P.N. needs to unite behind the leader, if it is to become strong again, and the leader should do what he could to bring everyone on board.

The first thing that Delia needs to do is to persuade each and every member of the party that he knows of who has shown disappointment by tearing his/her membership, by speaking to them individually. He needs to win their trust. He can only do this by proving to them, beyond all doubt, that all that has been said about him is untrue, without seeming too offended or defensive when doing so. The second thing to do is to explain more clearly that he is not an anti-establishment politician of the kind as Donald Trump, and that he is prepared to work with everyone, even those who have been very much against him during the campaign. If Delia manages to do this, then I believe that he stands a good chance to unite the party. I am sure that most of those people who have torn their membership will eventually warm up to him to the benefit of the P.N., and even the country that needs a strong opposition.

On the other hand, it is important that we all accept the choice of the majority. This is done by considering it as a clean slate for Delia, and allowing him to prove that he can really bring the P.N. forward. It is way too early to judge what kind of leader Delia is going to be, and it is important that we all give him a fair chance to prove himself. I am prepared to do so. Are you?
   

Simon Busuttil, the P.N. leadership election, and honest politics

Honesty in politics, and in all walks of life, is the most important thing to have. This is why I respect Simon Busuttil for what he stands for, and what he stood for as P.N. leader. As Leader of the Opposition, Busuttil fought for and spoke tirelessly about good governance in politics, and made this central to the P.N.'s electoral campaign, and during his four years at the helm of the party. Some people say that he focused too much on good governance, but said too little of other things people want to hear about, such as the economy, or daily problems. My take on this is that Busuttil understood that good governance is what ought to be the foundation of a government that could bring sustainable progress to our country, and daily needs are conditioned by sustainability. It is fallacious to believe that the positive economic wave that our country is riding upon at this point in time is sustainable without the good governance to go with it. Thus, the idea of some that they do not care if people in the present government take what isn't there's, as long as the rest of society is better off, is shortsighted and will come to bite them in the future. Corruption will ultimately catch up on us and them with devastating consequences to the economy, and to our way of life, including our daily needs. This is why fighting corruption was central to Busuttil's leadership of the P.N.

Some people say that the P.N. was being run by the blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia, and that her accusations were unsubstantiated. On this, there may be the relevant point that relying on what the independent press comes up with is not the right way forward for any political party; that the P.N. need to be self sufficient However, in most if not all democratic countries, what journalists discover and publish is taken seriously, and there have been politicians who were forced to resign, because of what journalists said about them. On the other hand, I will argue that the P.N. might need to invest more on it's own investigative journalism, while taking into account what independent journalists say about the situation in our country and abroad. What was said about the Muscat government before the last general election by Caruana Galizia raised questions that couldn't be ignored by Busuttil leadership, and he did right to raise the alarm. The prime minister, Joseph Muscat, was unable to come up with a credible explanation on the Panama papers, and the P.N. did the right thing to ask for his resignation, together with that of Minister Konrad Minister, and his (Muscat's) Chief of Staff, Keith Schembri. For a politicians who believes in good governance as is Busuttil, such accusations made the position of all three untenable.

People were called to the streets by the P.N., and a lot of activists and supporters flocked in their droves. They believed what Caruana Galizia said, or rather I used to believe that they did believe what Caruana Galizia said, and were in it because, as did Busuttil. they believed in clean and honest politics. My experience of many P.N. activists was that they were constantly looking forward to the next story that could damage the P.L., and it's leadership in the Caruana Galizia blog. I was one of those who was there, and who supported the P.N, in its fight against corruption, and in support of good governance. I took part in the protest, because I believed and still do that full disclosure and transparency should be central to politics. I did not do it to damage the government, or to propel the P.N. into government at all costs. Could this be said of some people who were present at the protest? My answer to this is "No!!". Some were just interested in scoring points against the P.L., not to bring a better future for our country.

To some extent, I could understand that some people consider politics as if it were a football match, and that they consider winning at all costs as the most important thing. However, having politicians in the P.N. reasoning in that way beggars belief. They should rise up above the populism of the crowd. I remember Clyde Puli, Jean Pierre Debono, and others who now support Adrian Delia's candidature for leader, agreeing with Caruana Galizia, and publicly stating that the prime minister should shoulder his responsibility for not firing Minister Mizzi and Chief of Staff, Schembri, and resign. They expected full disclosure from those in power. I thought that they genuinely believed that full disclosure is the most important thing to do in politics, and I was fooled at the time about their intentions being noble. Nowadays, I doubt whether their true motive was that of fighting for full disclosure. I am more inclined to believe that they adopted a position, because it was in their best interest to do so i.e. for their political career. If they really do believe in transparency and full disclosure, I cannot fathom how they do not have a problem with the fact that the candidate that they are supporting is being accused of the same things, by the same blogger, as were Mizzi and Schembri. Delia refuses to clarify his position about his business interests, and raises doubts because of it, which will harm the P.N.'s long term future i.e. if he becomes leader. Delia was so unconvincing and hazy about his business dealings, when he was summoned to the ethics board, formed by the Administrative Council, that he was asked to withdraw his candidature by that same Administrative Council.

 Busuttil, who has always been consistent and true to his word, said that if he were in Delia's position he would have withdrawn his candidature. In my opinion, Busuttil did the right thing to respect the party structures, and expect that others do the same. On the other hand, Delia was defiant. And those M.P.s I have mention above who support him, welcomed his decision to go against the interests of the party, by defying the verdict given by the Administrative Council. One must not forget that the decision was taken because of what came out from the ethics board, which was the right thing for the Administrative Council to do. Delia's people always use the word establishment to justify their claim against things being done properly. They suggest that the establishment is working against Delia's candidature, which is nothing but a load of baloney. However, in reality, who could be more part of the party establishment than a former parliamentary secretary, and a Deputy Secretary General who have been there since the time of Lawrence Gonzi? If anything the man who is truly not part of the establishment is the outgoing leadership of Simon Busuttil.

If the P.N. is in any way going to continue the fight against corruption, we need someone whose integrity is not in doubt, and who doesn't need to be constantly defending himself when he is supposed to be bringing the party forward. The only candidate who fits that description is Chris Said.