Perhaps some training in internet use is in order for some of our politicians, if their use of Facebook is any indication. In yesterday’s edition of this newspaper, we noted how Franco Debono took to Facebook not only to criticise Richard Cachia Caruana, but to do so in a way which is hardly becoming of someone who expects to be taken seriously as a politician. Questioning a person’s sanity and asking whether he needs a psychiatrist is not only offensive, but also childish and petty – two characteristics a lawmaker definitely should not have.
We also noted how Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando lashed out at columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia, posting a statement with her picture to suggest, if nothing else, that he takes criticism very personally – again something a politician can ill afford.
Whether the point he was making is valid or not is beside the point. But the way he was doing it – posting the captioned picture on the pages of fellow politicians who have been subject to criticism by Ms Caruana Galizia – is akin to schoolyard gossip, and appears equally juvenile.
Obviously, these two examples are just the latest in a series of unadvisable uses of Facebook by politicians, though they are sufficient to indicate what should not be done.
Inevitably, many politicians perceive Facebook as a free and easy way to promote themselves, if the number of them with thousands of Facebook “friends” is any indication. Doing so is not necessarily wrong, and may even be advisable given the increasing importance of the internet.
But then again, many seem to ignore that with thousands of friends, their Facebook profile is very much a public page – even if they choose to make it “private”, and carry on with the assumption that it is as private as hosting friends at home.
The two MPs’ use of Facebook also raises another issue, as both lashed out at their critics in a seemingly knee-jerk reaction.
Politicians should not only expect valid and respectful criticism, but also patently unreasonable criticism and even outright ridicule. Perhaps this shouldn’t be the case, but people who willingly become public figures should be able to handle the scorn and ridicule – as well as the praise and attention – that public figures inevitably attract.
Dr Debono’s calls for tighter laws against libel and slander, for instance, suggest that he is not as thick-skinned as the job requires him to be. Existing laws already cover the spread of falsehoods, and suggesting laws to perhaps criminalise the more mean-spirited of criticism appears to contrast with the MP’s insistence on justice reforms.
Besides, politicians seeking or condoning the arraignment of people who “ridicule” them arguably exposes them to far more ridicule than the people being arraigned could.
By all means, politicians can, and should, address the criticism they receive. But the way they do so is key: And doing so in an overly personal manner, in a way which suggests that it struck a raw nerve, is hardly indicative of politicians who have what it takes to handle a job they themselves, after all, had volunteered to do.