The Nationalist leaning media has been trying to kill this story since the Prime Minister made one of his greatest mistakes of judgement in his political career in full view of the televiewing nation. So I decided to make sure that I will dedicate this column to the story about that famous Brazilian company that the Prime Minister hyperbolically announced, on PBS's Xarabank, that it was transferring its 'headquarters' to Malta.
The net impression televiewers got, as they heard the Prime Minister with bated breath, was that a new project similar to the one of Smart City was about to hit the Islands, heralding a new season of great employment, thanks to the good offices of the industrious nationalist government.
Now if I were Dr Gonzi, I would have displayed a degree of caution and prudence in the way I would have conveyed the message in view of the Smart City project fiasco. The way I see it, it was improper for the Prime Minister to resort to such pomp about this 'new' investment when the smart city project, announced more than five years ago, has not only not generated the promised employment of 7,000 IT employees, but a courtesy visit to Rinella will reveal that, save for the ongoing construction of two building blocks, the site still looks like a shanty ghost town let alone a busy IT hub.
To make matters worse the Prime Minister was so bullish about this Brazilian project that he even tried to score cheap political points in belittling and ridiculing the Leader of the Opposition live on TV for expressing his total unawareness about this investment.
The Labour leaning media immediately suspected not all was well as Dr Gonzi, from some odd reason, persistently refused to give a name to this new Brazilian company. How was it possible that such a great opportunity for political mileage would not be propped up with details about the new investor?
Indeed the first time I really thought the Prime Minister was hiding the truth was when, pushed by the press to reveal the name of the company, he declared that the matter 'should not be turned into a political football'. For someone who had just tried to gain political mileage on TV over the 'investment', it was rich that overnight he should try to persuade the press not to persue the matter any further.
It was then obvious Dr Gonzi was not interested in discussing this 'investment' any further which is a non-sensical attitude at this moment in time when the government would be expected to try to clutch to any straw - let alone a mega project - to alienate the listening public from the current mess it has found itself in - JPO, Franco Debono, a threatened budget on the brink of failure, a disfunctional new power station, John Dalli, a deputy leadership race right on the eve of the election.... My God, the list never ends!
The news of this 'new investment' was followed by silly and irrelevant statements made by prominent PN politicians on TV shows who knew there was no investment at all, or, if there ever was, there was no value added for Malta let alone prospects of great employment.
I watched Mario De Marco and Edwin Vassallo on TV trying to defend Dr Gonzi, blatantly refusing to answer direct questions and finding solace in the existence of other investment we already know of - not Smart City of course - as if the existence of other investment could minimally justify the Prime Minister's gaffe about this Brazilian investment. You hear them talk and they drive you nuts!
The politician who had the chutzpah to come clean was deputy leadership challenger Tonio Fenech who - most probably in a bid to assert his authority on the vacancy, now that the Prime Minister was bleeding profusely and his days in political office have really started to be counted now - stated plainly that the operation had already closed down and the only four employees on its payroll were already dismissed. So much for this great new investment!
While Dr Gonzi did not bat an eyelid and did not check the facts well before he rushed to boast on air about brazil nuts, he then did not have the temerity to face the nation and state that he got the facts wrong. It had to be his minister of finance to act as his spokeman.
It says so much about how the man has transformed - about his pride on which he is patently overdosing, and his humility for which he is demonstrating stark withdrawal symptoms.
Dr Gulia is the Opposition's Main Spokeman on Tourism