While I do not in any way intend to shore up the Tourism Minister for badly underperforming in his pivotal sector, I have been arguing all along that the main responsibility for our dismal state of affairs in the tourism sector should be shouldered by none other than the Prime Minister himself.

The reason for this is that he is responsible for heading the joint ministerial committee on tourism that should be ensuring there is the right synergy and cooperation between the various ministries that should together ensure that the Malta product is up to the right standard.

Changing the Minister might make a difference but ultimately it should be the PM who should be held accountable for our poor showing in this vital area, particularly since both he and the Minister have been so reluctant so far to admit that the country is facing a crisis.

My views were further reinforced by the interview that Winston J. Zahra Jnr recently gave to another local newspaper in which he admitted that there is a vehicle with the power to change things regarding the sector at ministerial level that includes other ministers, apart from the Tourism Minister, and is headed by the Prime Minister.

Government is at fault on three counts:

• for its poor performance in the tourism sector

• for refusing to admit that we are facing a tourism crisis

• for being so sluggish in applying the right remedies and strategies to reverse our sad decline

Although the Tourism Minister broke no new ground when he recently wrote about “what our clientele deserves” in another local daily, at least on that occasion he did bother to address our shortcomings, even though his main interest seemed to be to help us make up our minds as to whether we prefer heavy regulation to self-regulation.

What makes me see red is when, in the thick of a crisis in the mid-summer months, rather than addressing problem areas head on, Minister Zammit Dimech frequently takes up columns of newspaper space to rant on about cultural events – which do have their own merits – without devoting equal attention and energy to the tourism sector itself.

Before Parliament went into recess, my colleague Evarist Bartolo tabled a motion calling for emergency measures in the tourism sector. In order to show that we were not out to score cheap points, the Opposition did not even insist on a “division” or a vote on the motion. All it set out to do was to sensitise the government and the general public to the dire straits tourism happens to be in right now.

Having been one of the few MPs who bothered to follow the debate, I was furious when I heard the minister attributing the recent visits of Sting and Roger Waters as measures meant to improve our tourist product.

Although I happen to be an avid rock fan, I have serious doubts as to how many tourists actually came over to watch these two eminent rock artistes in concert. But this is beside the point.

The way the minister argued, one could have received the impression that these bands were brought over on his own initiative.

If anything, one should thank NnG Promotions for these commendable efforts.

No wonder a columnist recently remarked, tongue-in-cheek, that perhaps the whole country would run more efficiently if it were run by these promoters!

Minister Zammit Dimech apparently spoke mainly of “our clientele” to shift the focus onto our collective responsibility as Maltese citizens. This much we should be prepared to shoulder, but then there is another type of responsibility that we cannot overlook – and that is political responsibility.

And this is exactly where FZD and Lawrence Gonzi come in.

Another major short-coming of the way Dr Zammit Dimech runns his ministry has been the quality and competence of some of the people with whom he has surrounded himself.

Mr Lungaro Mifsud, who seems to have had the chance of having his cake and eating it, should have been told off for failing to deliver the goods, rather than being allowed to make the deafening statement that he was ending his term at the helm of the MTA prematurely because his mission had been accomplished.

Had it really been accomplished he should, as a matter of principle, have refused to accept the salary and benefits between now and the best part of next year. Because otherwise that would be tantamount to paying him for a performance that he will not be delivering during the coming months.

People in the trade tell me that he was the wrong choice from the word go, and his dismal performance seems to confirm this. Government would have gained more credibility had it stated categorically that it had, after all, given him the sack – which is apparently what it did!

The minister’s penchant for surrounding himself with his “own boys” is also evident in the composition of the Eurovision Song Contest Board, where being part of the minister’s campaign team apparently seems to be an important credential for getting roped in to lend a helping hand…. for a fee!

While the people chosen by the minister to form part of the new consultative committee on tourism have the right credentials to offer the right advice, many were those who have interpreted this as a likely ploy by the minister to shut up his worst critics!

I hope that those who made this assessment are wrong, for three reasons: because these gentlemen have much to contribute, because they should have been taken on board much earlier on and, thirdly because, knowing them, I am confident and sure that a mere appointment to a consultative board will not stop them from speaking their minds, as Mr Zahra confirmed in the media last Friday.

Let us hope that the Minister gives them the tools and resources to work with, rather than relying on them as crutches in case things continue to go wrong in the coming months.

Which brings me to the last comment.

Minister Zammit Dimech recently alleged that the heavy criticism of his running of the tourism sector is being orchestrated by the Malta Labour Party.

I know the minister as someone who has a sense of humour but he must indeed be joking to making such a ridiculous claim, particularly when, according to an independent columnist, “the local press, especially those NOT linked to any political party, has been highly critical of the government’s handling of the tourism sector – with two newspapers (one directly) calling on the minister responsible to step down.”

Add to these the barrage of letters in the local dailies and Sunday newspapers about the joke “Product Malta” has become, and one will realise that the minister is badly out of touch and out of sync to make such a ridiculous statement.

Let us sincerely hope for better days until the MLP assumes power in the coming months in order to start putting into place its emergency plan to safeguard one of the country’s most important economic pillars.

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Leo Brincat is the main opposition spokesman on Foreign Affairs and IT.