Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi seemed to be in a euphoric mood last Wednesday night.
Addressing Nationalist Party supporters in a mass meeting on the Granaries in Floriana to close off the party’s celebrations marking Independence Day, Dr Gonzi gave a list of all the projects that his government promised and carried out.
It was as if it was the last meeting before a national election, as Dr Gonzi highlighted all the positive aspects of his leadership, although he insisted that the legislature is still in its fourth year and that there are another 18 months to go till its end.
For the most part, Dr Gonzi was right in what he was saying. For example, the education sector has been given concrete attention by the government through a heavy investment because, after all, education is the basis of a country’s present and future.
He was also right to say that progress has been achieved in environmental matters and that restructuring programmes in government entities, which included those that have been privatised, have been fruitful.
He was also right to say that the SmartCity project and other IT-related investment in the coming years are opening up new avenues in the Maltese economy. He was also right to say that the pensions reform is to be tackled now.
He was also right, but this time only in part, in mentioning the investment in the health sector. The Mater Dei hospital has stumbled through a controversy that delayed its completion by years and the long waiting list for surgical interventions is not something that a government should be proud of.
That the country has recovered from its economic slump that will enable it to rise on its feet after a period of difficulty also remains to be seen.
And this takes us to what people in Floriana or watching his speech on television think was an omission on the prime minister’s part.
The question is: why did Dr Gonzi completely avoid mentioning the tourism sector, for so many years a strong pillar of the economy, but now facing such a hard time?
It is good that the people know about the government’s achievements, but it would also be good to know what the government is doing to help those areas that are not flourishing as others, or are not as thriving as they used to be.
Just as much as it is important for a government to highlight its achievements and plan to build on past successes, it is equally vital to tackle those areas that are not functioning properly and come up with ideas how to improve the situation.
Tourism is one of these areas, and considering the money that has been spent by private businessmen to build hotels and the fact that thousands of people work full-time or part-time in the sector, it would have been appropriate for Dr Gonzi to allot five minutes of his hour-long speech to talk about the subject.
It would have been good to know the Prime Minister’s thoughts on how the government plans to lift the country out of the difficulties it is facing in such an important sector of the economy. As it happened, people got the impression that Dr Gonzi was deliberately avoiding talking about this thorn in the government’s side.
We are not in any way implying that the government is ignoring the problem. But at the same time, it is believed that apart from mentioning matters which are feathers in the government’s cap, Dr Gonzi should have found the courage – the same courage that he said people should have – to speak about an issue that is worrying many workers and their families.
A prime minister who publicly admits there is a problem and speaks about measures that need to be taken to address it gains credibility in the people’s eyes.