Biographies, and autobiographies, are fashionable.  This time it is the turn of President George Abela.  At the very end of Abela’s presidency Andrew Azzopardi in this book traces the life of His Excellency from birth to the present day.

This proved to be a very arduous task for the author, because he knew very little about President Abela apart from what was reported during the five year tenure of office.  The author declared this himself, at one point.  Consequently he had to talk to a good number of people who know the President well in the different phases of his life.

In this way he managed to give us the story of a man with a very common childhood.  Reading the biography we come to know that George’s family knew what to live from hand to mouth meant.  At one time they had to emigrate to Australia in search of a better life, although this was for a very short period only.

To counter for this the Abela family was very rich in love for others, in solidarity and in the other traditional values, which they instilled in their son, and on which their son George built his character and life.

As the story unfolds, we learn that Dr Abela made it to the top in all the aspects of life he was interested in, through sheer hard work.  The people who talked to the author about the President describe George Abela as a very organized person who plans  everything meticulously.

He became a lawyer, and his services were sought very much.  He became a most trusted consultant of the General Workers Union.  He was very keen on football, and he became President of the Malta Football Association.  He entered politics and he became Deputy Leader of the Malta Labour Party.

After all this, ex-Prime Minister Dr Lawrence Gonzi chose George Abela to be President of Malta, seeing in him a great potential to unite the Maltese.  Dr Gonzi’s assessment was correct, because uniting the people was always central to Dr Abela.  He worked incessantly for unity and he used every resource he could get his hands on to achieve unity.

The value that stands out in the President’s character is solidarity.  He is always with the people, making it a point to lend a helping hand to the most needy and vulnerable persons of society.   Indeed, in this he found the invaluable help of his wife Margaret, who is as determined as the President is, to achieve success in her endeavours, and as patient and as generous.

In his respect for others, and in his life with them, George found himself.  Whenever he gave his support to, and served people, he found fulfilment.  In the words of Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dr George Vella, President Abela won the admiration and hearts of the Maltese with us typical personality, his disposition, especially towards the poor and the sick, and with the political correctness that he adopted throughout the presidency.

Dr Abela is a man of faith.  His faith in God sustains him and gives him the necessary energy to overcome life’s difficulties and to face challenges.  With God he has an intimate and spiritual relationship.

Part two of the book traces Dr Abela’s life by means of photographs, many of which unedited before.

Part three, then, contains articles by people who knew the President, who grew up with him, studied with him, or worked with him in any sector of his multi-faceted career.  People like Judge J. R. Micallef, ex-National Football Team coach Pippo Psaila, ex-General Workers Union General Secretary Jack Calamatta, Fr Joe Borg, Profs Ian Refalo, Profs. Oliver Friggieri and others write that knowing President George Abela was a very enriching experience for them all.

In his introductory intervention Dr Abela writes that the presidency was a very satisfying experience, for both him and his wife Margaret.  It gave them the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life, an ideal to which they dedicated their whole life.  With God’s help they succeeded to bring a much-needed change to many people’s lives.

Now, that his term of office is over, Dr Abela thanks God and the Maltese people for having always supported the presidency from day one.  He wrote that he and his wife will now retire to a more private and less hectic life with their dear family, which they value more than anything else.

Since its very recent foundation Kite Group published three very interesting additions to Melitensia.  All three are de luxe productions.   These books are finished to international standards.

The first one is “Gonzi And Malta’s Break With Gaddafi – Recollections Of A Premier”, written by Joseph Cassar.  This book is in English and gives an account of the rising of the Libyan people against Col. Gaddafi, and of the end of his dictatorial rule.  However, what is of greater concern to us are the courageous decisions taken by our ex-Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, for which he attracted the admiration of all the political leaders of the  world, and Malta’s humanitarian role during the conflict, for which our Islands were showered with praise.

The other two are biographies, and they are both in Maltese.  The first one is “It-Tabib Sandy”, and the author is Sergio Grech.   It is the life story of Alexander  Cachia Zammit, from birth (even before) to the present day. 

The other biography is that of the out-going President: “George Abela, Qalb In-Nies”, written by Andrew Azzopardi published this month.

BOX

GEORGE ABELA, QALB IN-NIES

A Kite Group Publication, 2014. www.kitegroup.com.mt. 

Printed at Print.It