The weeks on either side of the Santa Marija feast are usually a holiday period for most of the Maltese, and Maltese politics also slows down. Were it not for the issue regarding the privatisation of Malta Shipyards then we could easily say that matters have been very quiet ever since the election of the Malta Labour Party’s administration in the first week of August.

But there is another factor that has emerged this summer season – and this is the Malta Labour Party’s seemingly ongoing attempt not to let political matters be forgotten, not even when the people are on holiday and therefore show little interest in what is going on, especially considering that this is only the first summer after an election.

With Joseph Muscat almost in the news every day until the day the MLP administration was elected, and since then sporadically through his writings, the party kept things going on several “issues” since Dr Muscat took over as leader in early June.

Added to this, each and every day two or more Labour spokesmen come up with statements about issues that fall under their direct responsibility. Other statements are also regularly issued by the various MLP sections.

All Labour MPs have been given some sector to follow. Many of them are finding their feet in the new “portfolio” Dr Muscat has entrusted them with; others are simply following up the same issues they were responsible for before the election. The idea seems to be that Labour wants to keep things going; it does not want to release any of the pressure it intends to put on the government from now till the election, even if this will take place in five years’ time.

The initiative seems orchestrated from above; it is something that has been planned and is not simply a coincidence. The problem however is that whereas on some occasions Labour spokesmen do have something to say about a particular issue, and have a genuine concern about how the government is tackling it, there have been other times when these statements contain little substance. It would seem that these were issued just for the sake of being in the news and to maintain this regular attack on the government.

This, in a way, can work against Labour. While it is positive that the opposition is fulfilling its role and speaks up on issues that are of importance, on the other hand it cannot go to the other extreme of saying something just to try to keep up the momentum. Very often, this same momentum is lost if such statements become repetitive or else contain no newsworthiness, and it would be better not to say anything at all.

Issuing a press release just for the sake of making some noise will often have the adverse effect. People might end up thinking that if this is what Labour is concerned with, then the country has little to worry about.

And this is perhaps why the government, and even the Nationalist Party, is seldom inclined to reply to what Labour spokesmen are saying. Unless it is a major issue, such as the shipyard, or a statement that is misleading, the government very often ignores what the MLP is saying and carries on with its work.

This might be interpreted as being an arrogant attitude in Labour circles, but really and truly there are occasions when there is little to reply to. Not responding might lead one to think that the government is not concerned with the issue, but at the same time by replying the government would be giving too much importance to a non-issue.