Following the successful mass demonstration organised by the PN in Valletta, I have pencilled in my mind the PL reaction.  The PL will not call people in a show of force demonstration, but will put every euro to appease the electorate in the 2018 Budget. The intention would be to buy as many votes as possible through the 2018 budget measures.  Without question, PL disgruntled supporters will also receive their share. The 2018 Budget will be used to iron out the differences between the moviment and various non-governmental organisations which have emerged in the past four years, particularly with those who have swallowed the moviment’s bait hook, line and sinker.     

With the benefit of hindsight, I for one do not blame the thousands of disillusioned, sometimes with good reason, voters in the last general election who fell in love with the moviment.   But it is sad and very unfortunate that the PL has exploited the people’s good faith for the advantage of the select few and left thousands in the cold.   In the coming months government will strive to cement the wide fissures which have emerged in the moviment with cash.   

Whether the next general election would be battled on issues which directly impinge positively on the quality of life of people, or political mantras drummed into the heads of the widest audiences possible, is not very clear as yet.   Hopefully, it would be fought on issues which would improve the quality of life of people.  With some luck, in the coming general election, our future will be settled by a battle of ideas that revolve around key economic, social, good governance and environmental policies.   Here, I cannot stress enough, all allegations of corruption which have surfaced must be dealt with a firm hand. 

The next general election should be decided on sound promises.  Mud-slinging should be limited to the barest possible.  But my reading of the situation is that in the coming election, a no holds barred approach will be adopted.   I cannot predict the number of casualties, but I imagine that the number of casualties, metaphorically speaking of course, would not be small.  Whether slightly injured, badly bruised or gasping for air is indeed very difficult to predict.  What I wish for is that my predictions are wrong, but unfortunately I very much doubt they are.  But let’s not lose heart.

It is inevitable that the level of partisan politics will continue to increase gradually in the coming months, peaking once Prime Minister Joseph Muscat signals that the electoral race is on.  Mind you, not that during the past years partisan politics have abated much.  Recently, Dr Muscat hinted that the coming general election would be held in March 2018, but this could change as it the Prime Minister’s prerogative when he advises the President of Malta to dissolve Parliament and on which day the general election is to take place.

Away from the spotlight a small group of people in the two leading political parties would, I would think, be meeting regularly and pencilling, drafting and amending a strategy which should secure a win for the respective party.          

While electorate promises are necessary and must be floated, the electorate should be smart and not be blinded by nicely packaged promises in glossy publications.  While one may find it less difficult to pass judgement on the past, one can draw clear conclusions especially on the recent past, it is surely more challenging to look into the future and make projections.  

Notwithstanding, I will try to delve into the future with a glance at the past. 

Harold Wilson, one of Britain's prime ministers, became leader of the Labour Party in 1963.  Labour won the following year’s general election with a slim majority and Wilson became Prime Minister for the first time.  In the lead up to the election, he coined the famous phrase, ‘A week is a long time in politics’.

On 16 March 1976, Wilson caused a political sensation when he announced he was to resign, just over two years into his fourth stint as Prime Minister, and five days after his sixtieth birthday. He had been Labour leader for 13 years, and Prime Minister for nearly eight. Wilson’s resignation was unusual not least because, for most of his party and the general public, the announcement came out of the blue and was not seemingly prompted by any obvious health issues.

Apart from the historical perspective of Wilson’s resignation, what has endured is his catchphrase.   I, and I presume many others, am in agreement with the slogan that a week is a long time in politics.  I have no doubt that things can change, shift and swing from one side to another within days. Of course in all this the electorate has an important say in the process of change which should be exercised with caution and diligently as mistakes cost dearly.  

It is becoming clear that the electorate is waiting eagerly not for empty promises but for concrete actions that put people’s mind at rest.  Time has come – people’s aspirations should and must take centre stage in our political scenario.       

 

Gejtu Vella

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