Prior to the General Election, Labour often boasted that, amongst its more notable credentials, one could find a clear roadmap for the way ahead. This was probably Labour’s loudest ‘cock-a-doodle-doo.’ Seven months later we know as a fact that they neither had a doodle, let alone a map on how to ‘doo’ it once elected to power.
Joseph Muscat would address almost any concern with this imaginary roadmap. Naturally words are free; it is easy to claim that one has a plan but it is a totally different story when it comes to actually putting one into action. For seven months now, Labour has been challenged time and time again to present, in concrete terms, as opposed to fancy billboards, its roadmap for job creation.
Labour has not only shied away from giving any specifics on how it intends to tackle the challenge of job creation, but is ignoring the subject altogether. It’s as if all of Europe considers job creation to be the greatest challenge except for Prime Minister Muscat and his cash-laden cabinet.
Only a few weeks ago, I attended a YEPP (Youth European People's Party) meeting in Bucharest where the various Youth Wing organizations affiliated within YEPP from all over Europe signed a pact to work together in making job creation not only a buzz word, but truly an item on Europe's political and economic agenda.
It is clear that Europe has smelt the coffee and realized that unless a strategy is adopted, Europe faces a bleak future. Not so our government. In the wake of worrying unemployment figures over the previous months, we haven't heard a single word in response.
A few days after having heard Labour's first budget we've all began to digest its implications; a budget that was a golden opportunity for Labour to introduce measures that would encourage economic growth and increase investment, whilst addressing niche sectors that desperately need the government's attention after having been ignored over pettier issues for the past seven months.
One would have thought that our government would have sought to implement measures which address job creation in the services sector as well as in the trade sector, and not just create jobs for the boys. Our government quite simply cannot call itself responsible if it fails to address the matter with the importance that it deserves in the upcoming budget.
Sadly, so far, the budget has revealed itself to be a mere political exercise in covering up the evident vision-less governance.
The fact that our government has quite simply put the strengthening of the entrepreneurial culture, the strengthening of medium and small enterprises and the improvement of trade-based education off the map is not at all encouraging. The abandonment of the research and development sector is merely further proof of these seemingly bleak prospects.
Clearly Malta deserves better.
Malta deserves a government that faces challenges head on rather than one that acts like an ostrich. Malta deserves a government with a plan that will keep us on the path of economic growth.
Malta deserves a government that recognizes that having a plan on job creation is no luxury or added bonus, but a most vital and crucial part of a government steering the country towards success.
Evidently Labour has continued to fail to pick up the baton and run the race. The golden opportunity knocking on Labour's door went off begging.
With all its apparent shortcomings, the Nationalist Party has successfully created and expanded whole industries from scratch for the current and upcoming generation of workers. On the other hand the only quick-fixes this innovative and foreseeing government could think of are selling passports and parts of Enemalta. Wow. That’s consoling. We can all lay back and sing together. ‘Cock-a-doodle-doo, My master's lost his fiddlestick, And knows not what to do’.
Kevin Plumpton is a PN Candidate for the upcoming EP elections.