There is no doubt that the Nationalist administration needs to enhance its communication channels with various sectors – its grassroots, social partners, NGOs and the people in general. Unlike the Labour Party, the Nationalist Party does not have a significant natural base to rely on, those who will vote for the party irrespective of its policies and its leadership. Since the 1981 election the Nationalist Party has consistently won the elections by conviction. It has communicated its policies and vision to the electorate; it has explained its decisions to the electorate, and while the party administration maintained its link with the grassroots, the various PN administrations kept on grasping the mood of the Maltese.

For various diverse reasons the traditional channels of communication are no longer effective. One of the main reasons is potentially the general mood of the country, in the sense that the visionary targets of 20 years ago have been reached: normalising the country, establishing proper democracy, establishing adequate institutions, updating the country’s infrastructure and eventually joining the EU and the Euro zone. One might feel a feeling of euphoria and achievement when looking at what we have achieved in the last 20 years, but it should not be so. The Nationalist Party should be careful not to become a victim of its own success as happened to other parties in Europe along the years.

Another reason for the ineffective communication is the thick agenda of the government, the global crisis that we are facing and the structure of the new cabinet. During the electoral campaign in 2008, PM Gonzi promised a leaner Cabinet. This enhances decision making from one perspective, but on the other hand puts an immense burden on the Cabinet ministers. With an increased local portfolio, and numerous EU ministerial meetings to attend, spare time becomes a luxury. The electorate, which is used and needs to communicate with ministers on a continuous and physical basis, feels neglected if a particular minister does not have time for them.

Nationalist MPs should fill this gap. The people should be aware and feel that they can talk to Nationalist backbenchers, who in turn should be available, and most importantly listen to the electorate. The grassroots, and the general population for all that matters, should be aware that they can convey their complaints, suggestions, frustrations, whatever to their MPs, whether from their district or not. I am sure that most of my colleagues would be willing to do so. We are geared up to do our job and be of service to the Maltese people. The government’s agenda is what it is, EU reality is there, while the global crisis requires constant monitoring. I encourage the newspaper readers to approach various Nationalist MPs to air their thoughts.

The electorate should not be inhibited from airing their views and frustration. I hope that the next PN council should serve this purpose well. However we should not wait and we will not wait, for the formal structures of a national council. Dr Gonzi as leader of the Nationalist Party has already committed himself to meet all the Nationalist Party Committee activists and will also start a number of meetings with various sectors of our population.

I humbly suggest that when a person’s needs are not acted upon by one politician, there should be no hesitation for him to contact any other party Parliamentary member, MEP or party official and ask for his support. I feel that one should not just wait and say that that particular politician did not help me but one should knock other doors and find new politicians to help out to solve a particular problem. However it is of utmost importance that people should understand that sometimes they have to take a “no” as an answer to their request. Not all requests are possible and can be solved.

If the electorate feels that they are being let down, if they feel that they are not receiving an appropriate service from government departments, they should inform their MPs. Various government departments are caught up in red tape, which quite frankly is tiring and is a huge burden on SMEs and the self employed. In a utopian world, these departments should be practical. We understand that some government workers want to maintain the status quo; Enemalta is a case in point. Unfortunately this attitude is endorsed by their union, who is the first one to complain if the government takes any measure to increase productivity. Finally, MPs should also be aware of cases where government employees do not provide the required service, for the simple reason that their loyalty is not to their country and their job, but to the Labour Party.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority is a typical example. One hopes that the reform process that Prime Minister Gonzi launched yesterday afternoon will be the way forward to start solving the Mepa problem.

Communication should follow two way channels. While the electorate must be aware of the right channels to air its views and frustrations, the government should also communicate its decisions and policies better. Although the electorate is educated and has access to information (such as the ever increasing use of the internet), the government should not take the free flow of information for granted. Although helpful, posting reams of information on the various government websites is not enough. The PN administration should explain its policies in layman’s terms. The government is there to lead, and take decisions, even unpopular ones. However it should constantly reflect on explaining its decisions to the people.

Misconceptions on the EU still abound. Although we have been EU members for a number of years, misinformation about various sectors is still rampant, in particular on fishing, hunting, agriculture, immigration and the environment in general. Some people, even politicians, still resort to lies to misinform these sectors about the EU. The PN MPs should be aware of this, and never take anything for granted.

Finally the government should also make sure that the results are known. We are facing one of the worst economic crises. The UK is one of the worst hit countries. Still in mid-June, a few days after the EP election, Eurostat confirmed that Malta was the EU’s best performer in employment between January and March, registering growth despite the battering that jobs have taken from the global recession. This compared positively with other EU states.

Also, this week, credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s has maintained its stable outlook for Malta in its latest analysis of the economy and public finances. The agency reaffirmed its A/A1 sovereign credit rating, deemed to be among the highest. Standard and Poor’s stated that the stable outlook balanced its expectations of a fiscal consolidation in the medium-term against the challenges of economic reform and the high debt burden.

I look forward so that in the coming weeks and months ahead of us till the next general election we will all do our utmost to listen more, care more and act more upon the needs of the Maltese electorate.

David Agius is the Government Whip

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