Who says politics is not dirty? A few weeks ago, a speech by Ed Milibrand, as leader of the British Labour Party, could have been the last straw that pushed his brother David to quit front-line politics but still remain in Parliament. The reason was that when his brother Ed flatly denounced and condemned the decision taken by Britain to join the US in the Iraqi war, his brother David looked stone-faced at Harriet Harman applauding Mr Ed when he openly declared that, “... it was wrong to take Britain to war in Iraq”. This is because Harriet voted in favour of Britain’s involvement in the war. It was reported in the UK Independent a few days later, that when David angrily asked her why she was applauding, knowing she had voted in favour of Blair’s move, she replied, “I am clapping because he is the leader. I’m supporting him”. A change in leadership means a change of what you stood for under the previous one.

In the local political scene, we have something similar. We have watched several government backbenchers revolt and speak their mind. We also had one who absented himself when a certain issue came up for voting. But you do remember these rebels saying one thing and expressing otherwise their conviction on the same issues they convincingly voiced. When it came to the vote in Parliament, they kept mum and voted against what they actually believed is right!

How hypocritical politics can be!!

Louis Fenech