It is time for public opinion to clearly state that the way the Prime Minister is being harassed by the One News team is nothing short of disgusting.

For days on end we have assisted, incredulously, at the scenes of Dr Gonzi almost forced to run away from a public appearance because sure as daylight he will be hounded by the cameraman and journalist who persist in thrusting microphones at him and relentlessly follow him until he leaves.

If they were to do the same to anybody else, that victim would undoubtedly flare up and possibly lash out. Perhaps that is the intention after all, to see Dr Gonzi lose his proverbial calm and make a fool of himself, which we will then see no end of in constant repetition.

There is a law against harassment. Or if there isn’t, there should be one. Anybody who is being harassed in such a manner would normally run to the police for protection. But this is Malta, you see, where politics is the name of the game and politicians are fair play for anyone. Which then translates to mean that they are not even accorded the normal protection any citizen has a right to.

One is not asking that the Prime Minister get special treatment, even though he is the head of government and represents us all not just when he is on foreign soil but also when he is here. He should, however, at least get the same treatment any citizen has the right to, from the police who have never, in living memory, acted to protect the Prime Minister’s rights as a private person. For, you see, this is politics and the other side be on top in two years’ time. Or because Dr Gonzi has not thought of making an official complaint.

On Thursday, when Dr Gonzi visited Melita Cable at Mriehel he was taken on a tour of the building, with the One News team dogging his every footstep. They hung around while he waited for the lift. And, when the lift came, they even forced their way into the rather small lift with the camera just two or three inches away from the Prime Minister’s nose, and no place for the chairman of the host company.

Having said all this, it is equally fair to state that Dr Gonzi cannot hide behind a non-committal silence on this court cleaning contract saga. If anything, the Labour media’s antics are making Dr Gonzi appear a victim when he should be facing the issue squarely and, if mistakes were made, address them squarely and objectively.