If the Labour Party does not make the same mistakes it made in the weeks leading up to the 2008 election, and I believe that they have learnt the lesson, it is hard to imagine them on the Opposition benches next time round.
The Nationalists derided the Labour Party for taking to the streets last Friday in what was, as expected, a mass event that attracted thousands, but unless the Nationalists change their ways, they are looking at defeat straight in the face.
It might already be too late for them. In March 2008, they managed to turn the tables with a flurry of last-minute promises, and only because Labour scored a few own-goals, one of them being the proposal for an interim class in between primary and secondary schooling.
I doubt the PN will be able to hold on to power this time, whatever they manage to come up with in the two years that separate us from the election.
Yes, Malta was one of the countries that was least hit by the economic crisis that destabilized the rest of the world, and which led to financial catastrophes in countries that sit with us at the European Union table. No day passes without Net TV reminding us how well we are doing when compared to Greece, Spain, Ireland and Portugal, while ignoring the plight of us Maltese.
Yes, the reforms that have been carried out have enabled us to move forward, and those that are planned for the near future are intended to make life better.
Yes, our tourism industry survived a difficult year to bounce back with record figures in 2010, and investment keeps coming while unemployment figures are kept low.
Yes, the number of projects that have been implemented are unprecedented, and others will follow to make Malta look better.
But if people are no longer comfortable with their way of life, if the costs of electricity, gas, water and fuel continue to eat up a substantial part of their earnings, and if they continue to struggle to make ends meet, it would all be in vain. If they are angry and hurt seeing ministers take a hefty salary increase while they struggle to retain their standard of living, then the situation gets worse.
When people vote, they do so selfishly. They consider their own interests, not what the country has achieved. And, if they are faring badly, they will go for change. The country might have its streets lined with gold, but if people feel that they have been cheated and unless they have money in their pockets, they will look elsewhere.
This is what the Nationalists have failed to grasp, in spite of history having already given them a couple of examples. In 1996, Malta was flourishing after two consecutive terms of huge investment and an exceptional rise in the standard of living, yet the PN lost because of the VAT issue. I was still too young to remember the 1971 election, but the PN had also lost that after having given the nation peace, stability and a thriving industry following the difficult 1950s.
In both instances, more than nine years of PN government had taken the country forward, but there was no feel-good factor, and the country voted for change. This will likely happen again in two years’ time.
PN insiders and friendly media might mock Labour for being opportunistic and going for populist ideas, such as last Friday’s demonstration, but in the end Labour will have the last laugh.
Families with a higher than average income are feeling the pinch of the skyrocketing energy prices. Those at the lower end are, of course, in greater difficulty.
The New Year has brought with it an increase in the price of gas and fuel, which, with the already high water and electricity bills, have added to the burden of coping with everyday needs. People who shifted from electricity to gas because it was cheaper are now realising that it’s just as costly to cook their food and warm up their homes.
The Nationalists continue to blame the international situation. In part, they are right. But they fail to admit that maladministration is also playing a key role in the way prices are going up. The liberalisation of the gas sector has not brought about an expected drop in the price of gas either.
And then the PN has the cheek to boast about small reductions in the price of pharmaceuticals. These have been minimal and affect the few, apart from potentially leading to pharmacies having to close shop or reduce staff, while the exorbitant rise in energy prices has been across the board and will last longer.
It was an insult to our collective intelligence that the PN media chose to highlight the decrease in the price of a small number of medicinal products, while setting aside what’s going on in the energy sector. Do they think the people are stupid? Cannot they realise that, if they try to portray a rosy picture when things are going badly, it will have the reverse effect and make people more angry and frustrated?
Let us also not forget that, as from this month, workers under 48 years of age have started to pay more in National Insurance contributions, and therefore the €1.16 weekly increase will be eaten away before it is even pocketed.
Anyway, it’s not that it would change things. A €1.16 weekly increase is nowhere near the €600 that the ministers got.
The Prime Minister continues to insist that the COLA increase has nothing to do with the ministers’ salary rise. I believe him. But it does not stop me from thinking that the increase the ministers got was the most ill-timed measure that the government could have taken.
It was the perfect example of an insensitive and arrogant government.
That the decision was taken two years ago, but kept hidden from us all, is even more irritating.
The government says that it understands the public’s reaction. If it really did, it would have suspended the implementation of the measure until better times. Or renounce it completely.
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