The recent delivery of security paper to the Electoral Commission led many to believe that the government’s term could imminently be drawing to a close, but spokesmen from both major political parties and the commission said the delivery of security paper was normal practice.

Amid speculation that preparations for the forthcoming general elections – due next year - are in full swing, a spokesman from the electoral commission insisted that preparations were ongoing and the delivery of security paper was only normal, particularly since local elections are held every year. Besides, the Electoral Commission has to be ready for the possibility of an election at any time of the year.

The government’s five-year term ends in April next year, so many are expecting general elections to be held some time before the end of the first half of 2008 at the latest.

Moreover, it is also highly probable that the space that will be used as a counting hall will change for the forthcoming local council and general elections. In recent years, the counting hall has been moved from Ta’ Qali to the Mediterranean Conference Centre (MCC) in Valletta – a location that many strongly opposed.

Contacted by The Malta Independent, MLP deputy leader Michael Falzon said many deemed MCC as an inappropriate location, so it has been decided to move the counting hall to an area at the Trade Fair Grounds in Naxxar.

However, this decision is not yet official; in fact, neither the Electoral Commission spokesman, nor PN secretary general Joe Saliba could not confirm whether or not the counting process would take place at a new location.

Nonetheless, this newspaper has been informed that as soon as the Trade Fair grounds emphyteusis expires in the coming weeks, preparations are expected to begin and a section at the grounds will be transformed into a counting hall.

Many have been complaining about the difficulty to have a secure area around MCC and about the inconvenience of having to close many streets in the capital during the counting process.

It is still to be seen what exactly the final decision will be and the public’s reaction to the location that will actually be used for what is expected to be a busy first half of 2008 for the Electoral Commission.