It seems that Gejtu Vella, secretary general of Union Haddiema Maghqudin, wants to act like the proverbial ostrich and bury his head in the sand not to hear the truth. The way he reacted (TMID, 15 May) to my clarification about his comments on the General Workers Union and the social pact (TMID, 10 May) gives many the impression that, apart from denying the real facts, he enjoys attacking the GWU on every occasion that comes his way.

What amazes us at the GWU most is the fact that normally – and the GWU is used to this reality – attacks on the GWU come from certain political quarters and not from a fellow trade union. But perhaps Gejtu Vella wants to involve himself too in that comedy.

The UHM secretary general persisted in his incorrectness by insisting that the GWU has done a lot of harm to the country and especially the workers when it opposed the social pact as proposed in 2004/2005, while at the same time he refrained from revealing that that social pact was hugely detrimental to the Maltese workers, once adopted, as it was going to further increase and completely shift all the burdens on the workers only, with the excuse of competitiveness.

Part of the absolute truth that Gejtu Vella never mentions is that he and his UHM sided with the government and the employers when he agreed with the proposals of that social pact. With his behaviour at that time, Gejtu Vella was to commit the workers to more sacrifices when they were already carrying a heavy load of social burdens.

To sustain his argument he brought into the issue Malta’s membership of the EU, the introduction of VAT and that of the euro. Even here he was grossly mistaken. Besides that these were issues irrelevant in his reply, it seems that the truth is unimportant to him and that he can twist the facts as long as it serves him well to criticise the GWU.

The GWU has nothing to be ashamed of in its past. Even before Gejtu Vella was born, the GWU was already on the forefront, very often on its own, struggling for the workers’ rights. This is the history of the GWU and it is very much proud of it. The GWU’s history is one thing the UHM cannot and never will achieve.

The social pact apart, Gejtu Vella’s reaction convinced us even further of his antagonism by accusing the GWU of short-sightedness. If short-sightedness for Gejtu Vella means the anticipation and the defence of the workers against precarious work conditions such as jobs with definite contracts, temporary agency work, flexibility without security, hire and fire, cheap labour, less job security, the prohibition of workers joining a trade union, then the GWU would prefer to be short-sighted rather than sharing in Gejtu Vella’s fore-sight that brought over none other than the closure or relocation of long established industries, mass redundancies, decrease in working conditions and increased workers’ insecurity.

I reiterate that Gejtu Vella will do a much better service to the workers if he had to do away with his antagonistic feelings towards the GWU and instead commit himself to trade union unity in our country by doing what trade unionists from other local trade unions are doing. This is surely what the Maltese workers expect from trade unionists worth their salt.

Charles Vella

Executive: Media & Information

GWU