On Saturday, the people of Tarxien, together with many residents of the fourth electoral district, paid their last respects to the honourable Joe Cassar, known as Peppinu, the name by which he was affectionately called by his father and by which he was known throughout his life. 

The word ‘honourable’ has a political connotation. It is used by individuals who are in Parliament. Following the English and Continental practice, Maltese MPs are also addressed as honourable. Even our Courts of Justice are addressed by this distinguished title. Peppinu was destined to carry this title throughout his life. He was in politics, and for a number of years served as an MP on the Nationalist ticket. Afterwards, he worked as a Magistrate.

But as the parish priest of Tarxien told the congregation during the mass, the true fact that made him honourable, was that he dedicated his life to the love of his wife Mary, his family and to be of service to others. Thus, this explains why, he used to poke fun at those who addressed him as ‘honourable’ in life.

In literature, the term ‘honourable’ has another meaning. Thanks to Shakespeare, this term ended up receiving very derogatory connotations. In the tragedy, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare used the term ‘honourable men’ to stand for all those practices that are far from noble in politics. Shakespeare effectively convinced us, through the use of rhetoric, that politics is the art of deception, corruption and greed. Deception, corruption and greed are the central themes of Western politics. 

Peppinu had a different view of politics. His views did not follow that of traditional philosophers such as Plato, Machiavelli, Nietzsche and, closer to our times, Strauss. They all argued that certain truths need to be kept hidden from the public and society. Therefore, politics and faith share the same role. The real truth should not be divulged and the ‘faithful’ should be left to live a deception. If the real truth were to be explained, these philosophers argued, politics would collapse.

For Peppinu politics had to be inspired by the Christian ideals of doing good. He was a convinced Christian and as a Catholic, he had no epistemological crisis. He found in faith the strong justifications for his religious and political beliefs. 

From the side of his paternal grandmother, he was related to one of the founders of the Nationalist Party, Ignazio Panzavecchia. He treasured Panzavecchia’s pocket watch inherited by his father, who eventually passed it over to him. His search for social justice brought him to be closer to the political thoughts and ideas of philosophers like Antonio Gramsci, James C. Scott and the Jesuit Michel de Certeau. Like these philosophers, he believed that politics should be from the bottom upwards, rather than from the top downwards. For these reasons, he loved to identify himself as a Christian Democrat of the Left. He believed that only this approach gives credibility to politics. Like Gramsci, Scott and de Certeau, Peppinu put ethics and honesty to the forefront of politics. In simple words, politics had to be lived as a repetitive daily experience. In this daily experience, rests the weapon and strategy, argues de Certeau in his The Practice of Everyday Life’, to resist and defeat regimes of power.

As a politician, who lived through the difficult and violent times of the seventies and early eighties, he shared Scott’s ideas about the different peaceful strategies that are to be employed to resist various forms of political domination. As philosophical mentor, Peppinu had Fr. Peter SerracinoInglott. SerracinoInglott supported Peppinu throughout his political career, including during the period when he came under fire for his bottom upward approach by the liberal wing of his own party. 

I came to know Peppinu Cassar during the second legislature of the Nationalist Government between 1992 and 1996. I had started working on family reconstructions. I was inputting information on early modern Maltese families in my database. He was interested in rebuilding the Cassar family-tree but had some problems, as he could not find one particular marriage. I helped him to solve the puzzle. From that day onwards, we became fast friends. He came to my residence many times to discuss history and politics. The last time we met, was a few days before he had to be admitted to hospital. Unknowingly, it was our last meeting.

At a young age, Peppinu was marked for politics by the Nationalist Minister, Carmelo Caruana (il-Qronfla), who lived at Tarxien. The latter tried to persuade Peppinu’s father to have him join the Nationalist Party. His father did not understand what exactly Caruana had in mind. He was not a political man. Caruana was looking for new blood among the upcoming youngsters,in particular to fill the political vacuum that started to be felt in the Paola/Tarxien area in the sixties. Caruana had the acumen to realize that the district of Paola and Tarxien was suffering from political fatigue. He was right.

Then, the Nationalist MP George Caruana died. George Caruana had got elected through a by-election. Therefore, following his death, there was not going to be another by-election as in these circumstances parties go for a co-option. Emilio Camilleri showed an interest in this post, and for this reason, the PN needed to act swiftly. Camilleri was a very important local politician, who contested on Ganado’s ticket but did not get elected in 1966. Since Peppinu’s father had never given a clear definite answer to Caruana, the leader of Nationalist Party, Giorgio Borg Olivier took the decision that this seat should be filled by a young lawyer from another distant district, Eddie Fenech Adami.  

Peppinu had great admiration for Eddie Fenech Adami. Peppinu was completely behind Eddie and participated in all meetings, except the first one held within the party, to discuss Borg Olivier’s successor. Peppinu had his own version of facts about the eighties that contrasted with those recently published about these times by Guido Demarco. Indeed we planned to continue working together on this part of Malta’s history. We had agreed to meet after May 2, after his stint in hospital. But the muse of history decided otherwise. Peppinu had an exceptional memory. This man who was present at many important events and heroically contributed to shape the history of contemporary Malta, has passed away in eloquent silence. The true story of the Nationalist Party’s history during the turbulent seventies and eighties is now buried with him.

However, one thing would never die with him and that is his commitment to political honesty and the love towards the needy. I am more than convinced that he is proud that the party, he wholeheartedly loved, has chosen this theme as the leitmotif of the forthcoming election. Peppinu would have been extremely happy to read the news, published in the Malta Independent, that the young voters are considering honesty an important factor. When he militated in politics, honesty was not at the top of the political agenda, even though it was always meant to be there. Perhaps, in his days, this was taken for granted. Social reforms were also a top priority. He embraced both.

He was incorruptible and when, as parliamentary secretary he used to be approached by businessmen, he would cut the conversation short immediately. His righteousness was such that when in politics, he refused all gifts including returning pastries, cakes and sweets that politicians are offered.

Beyond politics, his other great love, besides his wife and family, was books and the Arabic Language. Despite the fact that he was born after WWII, he was still brought up in the Italian tradition for the love of languages and Italian literature. He enjoyed reading literary novels. He would be on the look-out for the latest publications and it was not rare for him to ask me to buy him books from Italy. Italy has the advantage of being one of the countries where literary books of great importance are translated even before the English. 

With his death, another chapter in Maltese politics has drawn to a close, but his legacy, as the parish priest of Tarxien stated during the funeral service, will endure.