I spent a few days in London this week, doing my level best to clear my mind of all the clutter that it had picked up over the past year. It was time for some family time before the necessary final push that is required of all of us in the forefront of the local general election and being a candidate …!

I came back home and, wonder of wonders, I was informed that something I had written a while back had been taken completely out of context by the PN Secretary-General Dr Paul Borg Olivier (hi, Paul!) in order to lambast the Labour Party. First I’ll give the text in Maltese, then a translation into English for those who might get lost):

Lill-elettorat issa gietu l-opportunita’ li jara li f’pajjizna tinqaleb il-folja.  Issir tindifa storika fl-amministrazzjoni pubblika.  Jekk l-elettorat ma jiehux din l-opportunita’ u minflok ihalli lil min iqarraq bih u jurih haga b’ohra, wara jkun kollu ghal xejn li jilminta’.  Li jibki xortih.  Jekk l-opportunita’ li tinqaleb il-folja il-poplu ma jehodhiex, allura wara jkun il-kaz li jghid: mea culpa.

Which translates into: The electorate has an opportunity to turn over a new leaf. To cleanse the public administration of our country. The electorate must take the opportunity now not to vote into power those who deliver untruths and say one thing and then do another. It will be too late to complain after the election. If the electorate does not vote for a change when a change is so clearly needed, then it will be simply  a case of mea culpa.

Much is lost in the translation but surely the phrase issir tindifa storika fl-amministrazzjoni pubblika, cannot be taken so far out of context to be construed as meaning that I am advocating transfers or that individuals will be sacked from the Civil Service. Paul, with all due respect, are you crazy? I use the word “crazy” in its most simplistic and completely non-libellous form, since I do believe that Paul has the right to form his own opinion. Paul has every right to criticise my opinion and to formulate an opinion on my opinion. I too can form an opinion then, based upon Paul’s opinion. Confused?

I believe Paul’s opinion is somewhat biased (as I know sometimes mine can be) BUT to take things and phrases completely out of context is wrong, baseless, useless and quite simply the wrong way to do politics. The basic gist of the above paragraph is simple to understand: corruption and mediocrity is unacceptable to the Labour Party. The Labour Party is basing its present and future strategy on one simple word – meritocracy. The Nationalist Party is finding this a bitter bill to swallow, since much of what has been done by the present administration over the past few years has not been based on meritocracy but upon the blue-eye-boy syndrome. Not all PN members succumb to this way of doing things but for now those who believe in meritocracy are in the clear minority. Much of what the Labour Party is proposing is hitting the right notes with the true electorate.

As has oft been repeated, the PN strategists are stuck in the past. Today, the Labour Party is looking once and for all to the future and to a new way of doing things. We have already made it abundantly clear that all that is good of previous PN administrations will remain. As will what was good in the last budget. The Labour Party’s energy strategy has been received with enthusiasm by everyone except the PN which has, of course, cussed and grumbled and declared to all and sundry that the proposals are crazy.

I refer you all back to just a few weeks ago, when the PN criticised Labour for declaring that, if given the mandate by the electorate, it would implement the budget proposals that were good. Fast forward a little and remember the effort made by the Labour Party to ensure the passage of Dr Tonio Borg’s nomination as EU Commissioner. Fast forward to today and note that the PN is lambasting the Labour Party energy proposals senselessly.

I suggest calling a spade a spade. I also suggest an end to the twisting of words and phrases. Let’s stick to what the electorate deserves – proper proposals as to what the parties intend to do if given the mandate to govern on 9 March. To the electorate, I suggest a simple sift through baseless criticism and hot-air. Look for the cold hard facts and proposals. This is not always easy but some pointers might help. When phrases are taken out of context it normally means that any such criticism should be disregarded!