Skartocc, Liquorish and Showtime – what do these three programmes have in common?

Well, (a) they all won awards at the recent Go Malta Television Awards as part of PBS’ line-up for last season and (b) they were all dropped or were made to drop out this season because of the exorbitant increase in the cost of airtime at the national station.

To further compound the irony, the drama series Gizelle, which scooped nine awards on behalf of One TV, was originally offered to (you guessed it) PBS, who turned it down.

(Before I go any further let me just declare that I was one of the 33 judges for the TV Awards.)

Now, whether or not you watch (or even like) local television, you have to admit that the decisions being made at Guardamangia are bordering on the bizarre.

I just find it baffling that PBS continues to shoot itself in the foot this way. The variety programme Showtime has now gone on to One TV, as have the creators of the satirical programme Skartocc who have come up with a new show called Tele Tubi. In fact, comedian Chrysander Agius brought the house down with his sardonic comment, “It’s a shame that we won this award for the station which pulled us off the air after three months.”

The reality show Liquorish and its hardworking producer Andrea Cassar are in television limbo at the moment, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she is receiving other offers right this minute.

PBS, which can’t seem to make up its mind on whether it is the national broadcaster or a commercial entity, has become so confused it’s acting downright schizophrenic. On the one hand it accepts mediocre productions, which are blatant vehicles for advertising revenue, while on the other hand it refutes programmes that have proved to have some merit.

The station has been systematically dismantled with no sports or drama departments to speak of (as could be seen from the dearth of programmes submitted) – while the productions that did compete on behalf of PBS came almost entirely from private production houses rather than being in-house productions.

So what has the national station become? An empty shell; a ghost town where it seems to me that the few people who still work there have lost the pride they once felt about working at PBS.

Can you blame them?

‘X’kumbinazzjoni!’

The above expression in Maltese (“what a coincidence!”) is often used ironically when something happens that is so blatantly manipulated that it fools no one.

That was my reaction on reading the news that John Dalli has been made the Prime Minister’s consultant. This decision is so wrong on so many levels that I don’t know where to start.

First, why did it take Dr Gonzi three-and-a-half years to rescue Mr Dalli from political exile, as if he were a knight in shining armour, when he was the one who turned his back on him in the first place? Rather than standing by his minister, Dr Gonzi blithely believed a flimsy report which had been fabricated by a shady “investigator” regarding alleged kickbacks for a tender at Mater Dei. The investigator was later found guilty of writing a false report.

Then there is the matter of timing: come on Prime Minister! Now, just now, you’ve come to the conclusion that this matter could not wait any longer and that Dalli’s name should be cleared? Apparently, the report drawn up by the office of the Auditor General has not yet been published because it does not have the official signature of the Auditor General, whose term of office has since expired. The obvious question is: why didn’t the Auditor General sign it before his term was up? Dr Gonzi says he has been waiting for Dr Sant to agree on the appointment of a new Auditor General, but would the new appointee agree to sign a report concluded by someone else?

Finally, there is Mr Dalli’s position in all this. His bitterness towards the government for being forced to resign on the basis of what turned out to be false allegations has been palpable over the last three years. He has written regular columns that virtually bristle with acrimony about how he was stabbed in the back. And then he goes and accepts a consultancy post!

Maybe I am too proud for my own good, but if that had been me I would have told them where they could put their offer of a consultancy. In life there are times when your principles come first, and I think this is one of them. After being treated so badly, and after being dragged through the mud and back and shunned by his own party, I feel Mr Dalli should have put his self-respect and integrity first.

After all, when the PN slammed the door in his face, the icy winds of rejection were as frozen as the icy winds of Siberia. Being left out in the cold like that is not something that can be thawed by a glorified title in time for the general

election.

Maybe deep down he knows that he’s sold out and that’s why he looked so glum at the press

conference.