If the government had to win the vote of confidence that will be taken in Parliament in the coming days, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi should still call an early election.

I say this for one reason – I do not think that a confidence vote won by the government in the prevailing circumstances will resolve the instability issues that have gripped the country over the past weeks.

Let us not forget that it was only two months ago that the government went through a similar test – which it won – a few days after one of its ministers, Austin Gatt, survived a vote of confidence on the public transport reform only thanks to the Speaker’s casting vote.

And here we are, on the other side of Christmas, facing a kind of instability that can only cause harm to the country. And who’s to say that in two months’ time something else will not crop up to destabilise the system once again?

So this is why I believe that, even if the government had to overcome the hurdle put up by the Opposition via a motion of no confidence it presented last Friday, Dr Gonzi should still go for an election.

Matters have gone too far now. It was one thing to cause ripples, and it’s another thing to go on the warpath.

Nationalist backbencher Franco Debono has stated that he has lost all confidence in the Prime Minister, who is also his party leader. The Nationalist Party parliamentary group as well as its executive committee have rallied behind Dr Gonzi and asked for Dr Debono’s resignation from Parliament, while expressing their full support in the Prime Minister. The Ghaxaq lawyer has said that he is not ready to step down.

It is hard to imagine that Dr Debono will have a change of heart between today and the day when the vote of confidence is taken, although I am sure that extraordinary efforts are being made to bring him back in line. So his way out is an abstention – either by Dr Debono not turning up or for him to say so at voting time. That would mean that, given that the rest of the MPs will be voting according to their party’s wishes, the Speaker would have to intervene once again with his casting vote.

But this would not resolve anything. It would still mean that the government is running on empty, and that a similar crisis can erupt any day. It would still mean that the instability and uncertainty we have been facing in past few weeks would continue unabated. It could still mean that the country could once again be thrown into a political crisis at any hour.

Is this the way forward for the country? Does it deserve to go through all this indecision every time Dr Debono has something to say against his party? Should this country be held hostage by an MP who, as Dr Gonzi himself has said, was annoyed that he was not given a ministerial position? Can the country maintain this election fever for too many months?

I do not think so, particularly at a time when the country needs to watch out for the perils that are coming due to the economic situation that is developing around us. We cannot afford to keep the country on hold, with everybody asking what will happen next – investment will slow down, if not stop completely, and the tension that grips this nation each time there is a political crisis or an election coming will linger beyond its normal course.

There’s another thing that the PN should consider.

I think that the Nationalist Party stands a better chance of being re-elected now than in a year’s time. The Franco Debono saga has raised sympathy for a Prime Minister who has steered the country well in the difficult situation we are living while having to face so many challenges from within.

Franco Debono is now on his own in this respect, but given the one-seat majority in Parliament there is a risk that what he is doing will bring down a government that has functioned well in the circumstances. He has energy and enthusiasm, and some good ideas too, but it does not mean that we have to accede to all his requests because otherwise he will throw a tantrum, or that all he proposes has to be implemented now, before the ink dries on the paper.

Seeing what is happening elsewhere – with thousands of jobs lost, unemployment rising to unprecedented levels, and economic situations worsening – it must be said that Malta, so far, has been able to weather the storm. All the Opposition could come up with in its criticism is the honoraria issue and the energy bills, which is not much when compared to the riots taking place in nearby countries.

This sympathy factor could be lost in a year’s time and, added to this, it is possible that the limited damage we have suffered because of the prevailing international situation could worsen throughout this year. We are moving towards more difficult times, so it could be better for the PN to present itself at the polls now that Malta’s head is still well above the water, rather than in 12 months’ time when we might start to sink.

The PN should understand that if the country staggers through the next year in this unstable political situation, it would see a party in government that is dragging its feet, and inevitably this will be in Labour’s favour.

Without Franco Debono and what he is doing, the country would have continued to be guided by a government that has performed well in the circumstances, and it would have slowly entered election mode as the end of its term in office drew nearer.

With Franco Debono, I think that there is no other option but to go for an early election, whether the vote of confidence passes or not.

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