Dr Malcolm Mifsud, mayor of Pieta, has been sent on a mission. In his “personal” article he has shown absolute loyalty to his party. The mayor has often been willing to gladly take the bullet for Gonzi, Saliba & Co. This time however he seems intent on chasing the bullet just to try and prove the same point (in Blue tone though) that The Green Party has effectively crystallised with the launch of its Rent Reform Campaign – the injustice must end! His ultra-loyalist brand of martyrdom is one I have no respect for – indeed the only feeling it produces is one of pity. Offering oneself as cannon fodder is sad, really, really sad. What is of concern though is his admission of his party’s impotence when faced with the pathetic state of our rent laws. On second thoughts though, the Nationalist Party has made an art of impotence in the face of difficulty.
In his article, Dr Mifsud declares there is “consensus that the rent laws should be revisited”. Where, may I ask, has he encountered consensus? His party only reacts when the Green Party brings an issue to the forefront of national politics. Minister Cristina has promised a report time and time again – the deadline was conveniently re-established just hours after Alternattiva Demokratika launched its campaign. The Opposition is sitting on the wall of political convenience and opportunity, waiting for the government to declare itself, so that it can maturely and cautiously form a diametrically opposed opinion on the matter. The zero-sum political contest is on again!
The most baffling declaration made by the mayor was that “politicians have taken a long time to make up their minds”. May I humbly ask when they made up their minds? Is Dr Mifsud aware of a decision the country is ignorant of, because up until yesterday Minister Cristina had not made up her mind? What is the man talking about? He then claims that “if (the reform) is not handled with care (it) could disturb our social fabric”. Really? What about 60 years of injustice? Hasn’t that disturbed our social fabric? Is he just playing stupid? Surely as a practising lawyer he would know that many controlled-rent tenants are as well off or richer than their landlords. Wasn’t this a disruption of our social fabric? Where was he during this time, where was our ex-Prime Minister, where is Premier Gonzi? Why haven’t they been concerned with the disruption in our social fabric? Isn’t this just another chronic case of institutional paralysis perhaps?
Dr Mifsud’s lack of depth on the issue is forgivable; I’m sure he will have enough time to grasp the basics once the 30,000 signatures are in the bag. What is not pardonable is his cheap comment about people living in cardboard boxes. His crass insinuation that the Green Party is advocating that people should be kicked out of their homes reveals the true intentions of his article – a pathetic attempt to sabotage the referendum campaign. Doesn’t he have more critical matters to tend to; the hospital chimney bang in the middle of his hometown, perhaps? The Green Party, may I remind him, was the only political group in Malta that actively and boldly defended the right of immigrants to have a roof over their heads, rather than the tepee-with-a-hole provided by Minister for Justice and Home Affairs Dr Tonio Borg. Let alone what we would do to guarantee that our own people are assured adequate and comfortable accommodation. The difference between the Greens and the Blues (God alone knows what the Reds think) is that while the Blues deem it OK that certain social housing is provided by landlords, the Greens believe that all social assistance must come from the State. At-gun-point-charity is not our idea of social services. Sorry!
The last paragraph of the mayor’s article constitutes a grand confession of his party’s impotence when faced with what he terms “the problem and our dilemma”. His party in government must truly be brain-dead because he can only envisage a situation where government will be “forcing people out of homes and businesses with the stroke of a pen”. Is this the kind of reform we can expect from this government? What is Minister Cristina preparing – a grand evacuation plan for tenants? A mass exodus into the countryside? His thinking is typical of a government that feels trapped in a two-party system where the only thing that matters is the PN-Duo Strategy Group’s assessment of vote losses. The pain, disappointment and financial burden carried by so many is to them (in USA-speak) collateral damage!
In all fairness though, Dr Mifsud’s admission of his party’s political impotence is not unique. The mini crisis that has become the Sea Malta debacle is another typical example. The major actor in this play is Minister for IT, Industry and Investments Dr Austin Gatt, Malta’s very own business-restructuring-union-bashing guru. He claims another feather in his feathery cap with the neo-liberal extremists who believe the government should own nothing apart from the prison in Kordin. The privatisation of Sea Malta will be declared (by NET TV and PBS) as a textbook example of modern government practice; cut-the-fat and move on! Let’s take a look at the basic elements of this story. The government has once again admitted that it is incapable of running public enterprises; a statement that many of you will agree with. However what are we talking about here? This is not the privatisation of a complex organisation like Maltacom. In reality, Sea Malta is a big name for what in effect is a tiny company, albeit one with a strategic purpose. The company operates two (or better, one and a half) cargo ships that act as a maritime lifeline for Maltese business to access continental Europe. Despite the strategic importance, the company remains a tiny one. Is a public company with two cargo vessels an impossible organisation for government to handle? Is Dr Gatt, together with his host of business geniuses and well-paid consultants not able to restructure this company and keep it on Malta’s balance sheet? Has a country, with one of the oldest maritime traditions on the planet, given up on sailing two boats a few hundred kilometres to Italy? Has Grimaldi Lines acquired some alien intelligence to which we have no access? Has our State really become that impotent? If so, will Dr Gonzi’s once-a-week descent from Mount Castille (to chat will the plebs) serve for anything else apart from boosting his government’s popularity with the ultra-loyal?
This country deserves better. The represented political class has failed to inspire this country into believing that a better future is just round the corner if they are capable to indicate the first step. If they admit to not being able to turn Sea Malta around, how are we going to believe that they can work to change this country? Their sick political pique has given us 30 years of stagnant political development. To an amazing extent, some people seem to have become accustomed to living with it. Now, however, their capricious games are seriously affecting our country’s economic development, and that hurts. You bet it hurts!
Edward P. Fenech is spokesperson on Finance, the Economy and Tourism for Alternattiva Demokratika – The Green Party