The Labour Party in Malta prides itself on being a party of and for the working class. There is of course nothing wrong in supporting social solidarity and it is not a remit that belongs to its own portfolio alone. Other political parties and organisations in Malta support social solidarity with their political philosophies and economies but the level and degree of social solidarity shown are, of course different. In the PN for example, there is often a more eclectic mix. The problem with the PL is that it often forms a government with an LCM outlook. LCM stands for the term lowest common multiple. I remember when I was a child the teacher used to give us sums to work in order to reduce everything to the lowest common multiple, that is to bring all figures down to the lowest numerical term which is common to all. That is how the PL works. It is its ever present raison d'être. Rather than try and teach and set an uplifting standard and quality in the different disciplines of a political economy, it strives to compromise to the point that everything and everybody is reduced to standards of the lowest intellectual level. Citius, Altius, Fortius (Faster, Higher, Stronger) are not words found in this government's vocabulary. The idea of raising people up does not lie comfortably on its policy actions. It is easier to keep everyone at the level of the lowest common multiple. It is in effect a government of mediocrities.
One looks at its actions and sees this everywhere. The Monti stalls issue is just one case in hand. The PL had struck up an agreement with these gentlemen before the election to move them to Ordnance Street from Merchant's Street, a move which I doubt will help them very much! True to its promise, it will allow these stalls to spill out in front of the new parliament buildings irrespective of such a thing called aesthetics. It does not mind ruining the city gate project as long as its potential voters are satisfied! An even more Philistine approach is the termination of Renzo Piano's project in the Valletta gate project before it was even finished. How insensitive can one be to terminate the project of an icon of European architecture on the pretext of saving some money? In this case, surely money was not the most important thing and, listening to Hon. Joe Mizzi bulldoze the completion of the remaining project without a modicum of decency was shameful. LCM at its best! Fodder in the mouths of those who cannot chew it!
Mepa's intention, under political tutelage, to grant thousands of amnesties even those in ODZ areas, is again another issue which ultimately rewards the imprudent and the voracious developers. The message put across, is that in Malta, it is better to go ahead and break the law, knowing that money or power will eventually sanction the illegalities. So much for the law-abiding citizen and so much for the environment! The pedagogy here is clear. Vote for me and I will give you what you want, even if objectively this goes against the interests of the common good and of the environment. Observe how many of the previous hunting regulations were rolled back to appease a segment of the population without any attention at all, to the rest of those of us who are prepared to appreciate nature's kitchen. Talk to a minister and he or she will get you what you want, irrespective of the ethical object. It shows a government that is unable to contemplate a hierarchy of ethical values and unable to come out in favour of the most important ones. LCW again! It is at base, a failure of ethical judgement of massive proportions, which will eventually be its greatest single cause of downfall, mark my words.
In foreign affairs we get the same drab scenario, with a lot of talk on neutrality before the ISIS threat ahead of us and of course no solid decision taken to deal with this issue, which is affecting everyone in the world including our own interests. Not even the fundamental decency to participate in the workings of a coalition, at least on the logistical and humanitarian front, as a minimum token action. No, we are neutral and faced with terrorism on this scale, we also decide to become irrelevant and neutralise ourselves as usual under a PL government. Neutrality is not akin to neutralization. Spinelessness is not in our Maltese DNA. People, European citizens, deserve better than the current invertebrate approach. Others can do the job for us, while we take a comfortable backseat making ourselves politically and ethically irrelevant in the process. Has anyone any principles? Any principles of international solidarity that is? LCM wins the day again.
A couple of days ago I met a colleague of mine who voted Labour because he had been offered a government job prior to election day, as seems to have been the case with many people. I asked him whether his wish had been granted. He assured me that he was waiting for the final go ahead to resign from his job with his current employer in the private sector, in order to be engaged with the state in a particular grade requiring no little skills, all of which he does not have! LCM again. The state becomes the ultimate employer of everyone so that you owe it and it owes you. What is the sense of siphoning off people from private industry to re-employ them with the state at levels of employment that are non-skilled? It seems that thousands of people have been employed by the state at this level in the past two years. That the economy shrinks in order to please your voters again seems to have no import to the PL! Does the government think that it can go on like this forever without an economic price to pay? Or is it ok to pay this national price for the first five years in order to gain a much wanted other five years? Ethical decision again and again.
In the final analysis, sound objective ethical judgement does not fit nicely with an LCM attitude. Neither in effect does anything else! Natural law will take care of this itself! When realistic ethical judgements are discarded in favour of purely subjective consequentialist ethics, especially in politics, the outcome is never felicitous. One need only take a look at our own history and that of Europe. Grey is not my favourite colour either!
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