One of the most widely read classics of Western literature is “Don Quixote”, by Miguel de Cervantes. The book describes the adventures of an elderly knight who, his head bemused by reading romances, sets out on his old horse seeking adventure. The knight lives in a world of fantasy in which, for instance, he perceives windmills to be oppressive giants sent by evil enchanters. His faithful squire, Sancho Panza, realises that his master is eccentric but plays along in the hope of getting rich.
The storyline of this book comes to mind quickly when one considers what the Labour Party and its leader are doing. Dr Sant is constantly fighting crusades which, to the detached observer, are obviously futile. No one in the MLP seems to have the courage to tell him this and the party follows its master blindly.
Dr Sant’s latest escapade seems to be a ferocious attack on Malta’s entry into the eurozone. The European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary affairs, Joachim Almunia after meeting with Dr Sant a few days ago, dismissed his arguments against Malta’s entry as irrelevant.
Unperturbed, Dr Sant and the MLP soldier on. They are, once again, resorting to misleading the public in their attempts to convince the electorate that the windmills they are charging at are, in fact, evil giants. They are telling us that Malta will be fined millions of Maltese liri on entry, a claim which has been refuted by both the local Central Bank and the European Central Bank.
What do we stand to lose if Dr Sant has his way? Entry is obviously beneficial to the tourism sector, foreign investors will definitely find a country with a stable currency more attractive and interest rates will go down.
Do you get that déjà vu feeling as well? Remember the days when Dr Sant told us that we would only be getting e1.5 million in aid from the EU (as opposed to the e800 million we actually got), that our young soldiers would be coming home in body bags as they would be forced to fight European wars and that Europeans would flock to Malta, on entry, taking our jobs.
Well he was right about that one. Europeans are flocking to Malta. Amadeo Minghi, Bob Geldof, Sting, Roger Waters and Marco Masini to name but a few. I doubt they’re looking for work though!
Had we believed Dr Sant we would have lost all the financial aid I mentioned plus other forms of assistance which are just as significant, notably in the environmental and employment sectors.
The general election is but a few months away. The Maltese will, once again, be given the opportunity to show that they are pragmatic enough to know the difference between fact and fiction.
Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando is a Nationalist MP
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