Long ago and far away, the ruling Nationalist Party was led by a breed of well-meaning idealists.

They spoke the language of Christian Democracy and sought to rally the support of people concerned with the plight of the underprivileged. They proposed to uplift the working masses by taking to the waters of market economics and liberalisation. Their elder fathers claimed to be inspired by the teachings of papal encyclicals.

Things have changed.

One could still find objective realists within the party, but this breed has been outnumbered, even marginalised, by apparatchiks who drew their strength from party polarisation.

It was because of this that the party lost support and was rejected at all three electoral consultations held since the last national election.

Dead weight

The party has not recovered from these successive blows. If anything, there is growing evidence of disarray as electoral opinion shows signs of restlessness.

The PN continues to harbour too many has-beens. It continues to wander aimlessly in the wilderness.

Although its present leadership insists on being taken seriously, it has lost much of its credibility, because it did not honour its promise to introduce “a new style of government”. It did not know how to dispose of its dead weight, and how to inject new blood at the top.

The speeches of its front rank spokesmen sound like the squeaks of uncertain trumpets – not the kind of thing that steels an army and keeps it ready for the next battle.

Its jaded team is sinking in the mire of incompetence, and is constantly being hassled even by the European Union which complains that its rules are not being diligently observed. Economic operators are groaning under the heavy hand of an inert bureaucracy and by households who cannot bear the burden of taxation.

The grim reality is that although tax and other revenue has escalated from Lm552 million at the beginning of the year 2000 to Lm829 million at the end of 2005, the total general government debt escalated from Lm885 million to an approximate Lml.5 billion during the same time span!

The PN’s latest efforts to stage a revival and present a vibrant image have, to all appearances, come to a dead end, leading nowhere except to the inducement of dissenters to take to the streets.

The problem with the Gonzi leadership is that it has failed the test of confronting the future. Instead of leading the electorate to the promised “early spring”, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi has come to be associated with a steady doze of massive taxation, culminating in the infamous water and electricity surcharges. His Cabinet made history when it peremptorily imposed itself, without prior notice, to re-open the development zone, thereby opening a can of worms.

Conundrum

More than anything else, this highly controversial initiative has highlighted the ruling administration’s trademark – that of a government which first decides and then feigns to discuss, and which is not disposed to take on board the sentiments of civil society.

To make matters worse, the Gonzi administration is at present overwhelmed with the presence of too many skeletons in its cupboard, some associated with abuse of power, others emitting malodorous smells, real or perceived.

The PN finds itself with its back to the wall, and has to man the political ramparts with diminishing support, as more and more stray sheep wander away from the flock

Future anthropologists will have plenty of material to analyse when they come round to examine how Malta’s Byzantine politics are conducted.

They will have to work hard to find the answer to our present-day conundrum – where accountability in public office is so often only honoured in the breach, where a form of government by diktat is possible so long as it is sanctioned by a parliamentary majority, and where civil society has no statutory consultation rights – and this in spite of the fact that the Maltese star is supposed to form part of the EU constellation.

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