While the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister and a couple of assistants (the Maltese delegation) were basking at Bastille Day celebrations in Paris to the tune of “O Sole Mio”, in my country the people were playing to the tune of “Anarchy in the Sun”, a preoccupying, dramatic and alarming situation where only one person stood out: Minister Gatt!

Austin Gatt in doing his job and acting tough when the going got tough faced an impossible, hazardous, dangerous and anarchic situation enveloping the country’s democratic style of life from a band of people that irrespective of their cause mutinied against order and public peace, violated the rights of the Maltese people and our guests, created chaos and fear, risked the well-being and life of others, threatened directly and /or indirectly the competent democratic authorities of our land. These people clearly and unequivocally violated vigorously the laws of the land.

The people demand an explanation how all this came to pass and how from a hearse-y matter, it turned out a horrendous matter involving the key players in public transport in our country and finding our minority government listening to the tunes of “O Sole Mio” and our Archbishop doing his “Waltzing Matilda”, leaving a government minister to face the political music all on his own. One wonders where was the Justice and Interior Minister, why were the army and police not mobilised right away, why Castille could easily have been sacked and burned down had not aggression somewhat temporarily abated?

Malta at that moment was facing the possibility of civil war which prompts many questions to be asked and replies called for if we are to confidently believe ours is a democracy!

Emmy Bezzina

Alpha Liberal Democratic Party