In its New Year’s message, the General Workers’ Union (GWU) said this year will most probably be characterised by another election campaign during which the Maltese and Gozitans will again be asked to make their choice in a democratic process to elect the preferred party to lead the country for another term.

Whether they like it or not, citizens will take sides in a way that does not always reflect tolerance in the prevailing attitude among political parties, since citizens have not yet understood that the election process is simply a political, democratic exercise that takes place between one term and another, said the GWU.

Citizens do not need to be divided over a choice that they have a democratic right to make. General elections should be considered to be a democratic process since they form part of a society that truly believes in both political and parliamentary democracy, said the statement.

The union’s statement went on to say that politicians should never try to fool workers by using illusions and non-existent utopias, and the GWU will continue insisting that political parties should not promise workers a false heaven on earth in order to obtain votes.

The union promised to keep its eyes open checking that political parties deliver their promises and said it believes workers should be treated as intelligent human beings who are capable of using their own heads when they are not

hindered by extra pressure from political parties.