Noel Grima’s last paragraph in his article in The Malta Independent on Sunday last week captured the only sensible road available to Franco Debono before the re-shuffle (too late now of course). He held tons of ammunition and strong political arguments to justify a challenge to the leadership and thus provide a flicker of hope for a fresh leader to take the PN to the next election and increase the chance of another term in office.

A mature and sensible backbencher should have first identified an alternative PN leader willing to challenge Gonzi, analysed the numbers for support, and called for a spill of the leadership positions if the numbers were there or close enough. This is very basic back room political hard work. And he then should have accepted that outcome − whatever it may have been. He has gone about this completely the wrong way. His reaction following the re-shuffle is so childish it beggars belief.

Franco Debono is a politician in training, with very good ideas, who has failed the final test before it has been even conducted.

Raphael Dingli

WATSON, AUSTRALIA