Cheshire Cat:    "By-the-bye, what became of the baby?"

Alice:         "It turned into a pig."

Cheshire Cat:    "I thought it would."

                     

I didn't campaign much during the electoral campaign of the last general elections. Being a village dentist, I spend my entire day engaging with people, even if it's not under the most relaxing of circumstances, so apart from representing my party on the media when requested, I only visited households which requested my presence and then just the families residing in the same streets, so as to avoid the misconception that I was making a distinction between households on any grounds.

Throughout the whole electioneering period I couldn't but notice the impeccable, good feel factor loaded, organisation, and flawless speeches delivered by JM, and the appalling, strained, lifeless, hopeless efforts put up by the PN side.

It was a frightening experience because, with greater power comes greater responsibility, and I wasn't quite sure how a more than massive PL victory, after almost 25 years in opposition would  be conducive to nurturing the alternative political behaviour scenario we were predicating .

Even then I wondered what would happen to the people's psyche and perception of politics and politicians, if having raised their hopes for a different transparent government so high, our PL government reneges on its promises and adopts questionable behaviour, like the PN government before it. 

Political activity can be destroyed by forbidding it or by rendering it so cheap, superficial and worthless, that the public space is turned into a vacuum or an emptier than empty space. A smooth, flawless even positively portrayed impeccable transition to totalitarian  governance would then ensue, and the White Queen's, 'jam yesterday, jam tomorrow, but never jam today',  belief, will become the accepted norm.

Only yesterday I met an exhausted hardworking mother of four who is still paying back, back breaking monthly instalments on her electricity backlog bill after her supply was disconnected pending complete settlement of utility bills she could not afford. 

She asked me to explain to her how she was made to pay, while  'owners' of Armier, St Thomas bay shacks who had seized public land, built illegally and stolen electricity are not only NOT being asked to pay back their dues but are being  rewarded by regularising them.

This encounter is just one example of the many questions the public is raising regarding 'What is Right' and whether we have the balls to do what is right, (rather than what is politically convenient) now that  being in government and not in opposition, makes preaching what is right sound painfully hollow.

Tonight we are having yet another debate on the energy sector. My Labour Government has admitted that it is reneging on its promise that it will have the new gas fired power station up and running within the time frames it repeatedly confirmed, but that it will still succeed in reducing utility tariffs for business by March 2015 as planned.

News of breaking THE promise has hit people very hard. Even the most sceptical among us were hoping that it was just hearsay, that it was PN spin. Unfortunately it seems to be true, the government's credibility has taken another beating, and the people's faith in political promises has touched the bottom. The least the government can do is to act with a modicum of respect by being frank and answering the people's questions.

The nation needs to know clearly what are the implications  and obligations, of any contracts that have been signed or are about to be signed with  the investors who will henceforth be major players in our country's making or breaking energy sector. 

We need to know, now, since it seems like it's been postponed again, when  polluting inefficient Marsa is closing down and BWSC converted to gas, in order to eliminate the 'cancer factory'.

We need to know what the new timeframes are.

We need to know what Enemalta employees can expect.

We need to know implications of the delay on Malta's financial situation, ratings and forecasts.

We need to know that forfeiting national control on the backbone of our economic development is really warranted and why it is warranted. 

We need to know what's going to happen to the surplus electricity that will be generated and whether as a nation we will have to buy it even if we don't need it. We need to know how our investment in the cable interconnector is going to pay off in the big picture.

We need to know if the pipeline option is still on the books and when it is going to rid us of the LNG monster in Marsaxlokk.

We need to know if there is a plan B if this deal is busted.

We need to know that we got the transparent government we voted in, and that it knows what it's doing.