The nomination of Michael Frendo as Speaker of the House of Representatives was not unexpected.
The Nationalist Party was looking for an experienced politician to take over the reins from Louis Galea, who will next month move to his new post on the European Court of Auditors. Several names were mentioned in the run-up, but at the end the choice fell on Dr Frendo.
Last Thursday, the former foreign minister was unanimously approved during a meeting of the Nationalist parliamentary group. He will take office when Dr Galea resigns next month.
Dr Frendo fits in all the criteria of an experienced politician. He has served as minister and parliamentary secretary, and has also been a member of several local and international committees, and currently chairs the House Committee on European and Foreign Affairs. A few years ago, he was close to being appointed Commonwealth secretary-general.
In the past two years he has been Speaker, Dr Galea has managed to find the right balance in a Parliament with two sides that are separated by only one seat. There were tense moments in the House on several occasions but Dr Galea managed to defuse them with sagacity and responsibility.
When, at the last sitting before the Christmas recess, there was a tie as Nationalist MP Franco Debono had left the building, Dr Galea used all his experience and political acumen to calm down the situation, acting fairly with both sides of the House until the situation went back to normal.
Such a situation was probably in the Prime Minister’s mind when he came to decide who was to succeed Dr Galea. And Dr Frendo is surely one politician who can guarantee the same level-headedness in tense situations.
The Nationalist Party has also used the situation to bring in another fresh face as it seeks to rejuvenate itself.
A few months ago, when former Social Policy Minister John Dalli was appointed as Malta’s commissioner to the European Union, it was Dr Peter Micallef who made it to Parliament through a casual election. Dr Micallef was a newcomer to the House of Representatives, and he was immediately made a parliamentary assistant to the Health Minister.
With Dr Galea also moving out, the PN took the opportunity to “promote” one of its senior and most respected politicians in his stead (Dr Frendo) while at the same time filling in Dr Frendo’s place with a young politician, coming from the same electoral district that Dr Frendo contested.
It will be Karl Gouder, the PN’s deputy director of information, who will substitute Dr Frendo on the PN backbench. Like Dr Micallef, Mr Gouder will be a new addition to the PN line-up and, when he takes the oath next month, he will become the youngest MP.
While continuing their career on an international level, Mr Dalli and Dr Galea – the two who had contested the post of PN leader against the eventual winner Lawrence Gonzi – have now moved out of the local political scene to be replaced by younger politicians.
Both Dr Micallef and Mr Gouder served as councillors, and this is once again proof that local councils are serving as a learning curve for many aspiring politicians. Mr Gouder will now have to resign his seat in St Julian’s to take up his new position in the House of Representatives.