One of the persistent accusations that the GWU and the Labour Party lashed out during the joint political protest last Sunday was that the government is detached from ‘the people’. They assume and ‘pretend’ that they are representing ‘the people’, whereas the ones detached from reality, both political and economic, are the two partners themselves. Both the GWU and the Labour Party need to realise that the mentality in this country has evolved, people are no longer interested in party politics and show of force, and above all the people disapprove of insults to the media and Members of Parliament.
Above all, these political protests have shown that behind the change of logos and new designs or drawings, in substance nothing has changed with the Labour Party and the GWU tandem. The more they change the more they stay the same.
Both the GWU and the PL lack completely any sense of economic reality. They do not even realise that we are located in the Mediterranean basin, surrounded by PIGS countries, which are facing a deep crisis. Some of these countries are slowly planning austerity measures to plan their recovery, while other countries refuse to face reality. Greece is a case in point. Ironically enough, the socialist prime minister of Greece who is trying to rein in the fiscal deficit, was the same person who took the people to the streets before the elections, fooling them with unrealistic promises.
Last Monday during the debate in Parliament, the opposition members were quite jovial. They managed to rally their supporters outside, received a lot of support and clapping, and when they had the opportunity to explain to the people their alternatives as to how they would handle the ever increasing costs of imported fuel, not a single member of the Labour members of Parliament managed to utter a single proposal. They all parroted the typical buzzwords.
The GWU and allied unions had a golden opportunity to come out with alternative proposals, way before last November. One would have expected a minimum effort. None. But at least they were happy since their partners outside managed to rally the crowds according to plans tailor-made for the Labour Party proposal. A round of applause outside cannot change the economic reality of the price of oil.
The irony is that the GWU-Labour Party tandem not only lacks any other solutions, but now they are refusing to talk to anyone, lest they are challenged. The GWU refused to join in the MCESD talks. It did its utmost to disrupt and damage these talks, clearly showing that its sole purpose and serious discussion between the social partners was bothering its master.
Typical of Labour politicians, it is now also refusing to talk to the media. Any independent journalist who dares to ask serious questions, or questions the motive of the political rally, came under attack. It was such a pathetic pantomime. It’s a pity that after serving the Labour Party all these years, the GWU thought that with just a change in a logo, the people would have thought it changed. Far from it.
The government is determined to continue the discussions with the social partners, at least with those which have the interest of this country and their members at heart. These are difficult discussions for all the parties involved, since all of us realise that we do not live in a vacuum. I would also like to express my solidarity and encouragement to the members of these social partners who came under attack by the GWU, just for the sake of not disrupting the talks with the government, and serving the interest of the Labour Party.
It is quite shocking that with all the talk of modern party or whatever buzzwords they used, the Labour Party and its allies have never understood the true meaning of democracy. Other social partners were the target of insults, threats and violent instigations just because they decided to keep the discussions going. These ongoing negotiations are bothering the GWU, and are clearly not in the interest of its political masters.
Later on Monday evening the pantomime continued on the media. Having attacked all the media except for the friendly Labour media, they refused to talk to the independent press and even participate in a discussion on PBS. What a sad show it was. They refuse to discuss anything with the social partners, they refuse to talk to the media and above all they disrupt any form of civil discussions which do not serve the interest of Labour, which assisted in the logistics of the rally.
I would like to express my solidarity with my fellow MPs from the PN side, who were harassed as they made their way through Parliament. The old spirit of Labour lives on. I would also like to express my solidarity with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi who was the target of the worst virile verbal abuse, by the Labour supporters after being riled up by their leaders at the rally.
While congratulating my colleague Peter Micallef, on his appointment to parliament, we came to realise that we got a taste of what it felt for former Nationalist MPs who were insulted, at times beaten as they made their way through parliament in the 70s and 80s. At least this time round, the police did not side with the Labour mob. It is sad, that after all these years, the instinct for Labour and its allies is to resort to insults and violence.
David Agius is the government whip