The Malta Labour Party will soon be electing its new leader.

We have had three months of campaigning by all candidates, and the delegates who will be voting have the responsibility to choose the best among them.

I would have preferred more time, say a week, to be given in between the first and second vote (if the first does not determine a winner). This would have given the two candidates the chance to embark on a few days of campaigning, possibly including a debate, perhaps on television. Maybe independent journalists would have been asked to field questions to both candidates.

This would have given the delegates a better chance to know who they are voting for.

As it happened, with all candidates doing their bit but never confronting each other – as Xarabank producers suggested – the delegates did not have the opportunity to see the candidates under a bit of pressure.

But what’s done is now done, and the rules must be respected.

I just hope that the delegates will this week make the best choice. After all, it is not only the future of the MLP that is at stake.

Emmanuel Galea

Rabat