In the past days two reports, prepared by two separate organisations, were released.  The scope and purpose of the reports are different, and both should be delved into objectively.  The report ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ was approved during the 19 January 2017 sitting of the European Parliament, and the other, the ‘Corruption Perception Index’ was prepared by Transparency International – the global coalition against corruption – and released for public consumption on Tuesday 24 January 2017.

The findings of the latter report point in one direction.  Corruption is tantamount to gross social injustice and stalls all reasonable measures aimed to improve the quality of life of people.  Tailor-made initiatives aimed to support the vulnerable and working poor will not find the necessary support and funding, and are likely to remain on the drawing board when corruption is not nipped in the bud.

In this scenario, people – including in Malta – should, in all the legitimate ways, push their political representatives to take all measures to ensure that social justice does not succumb to corrupt practices.  It is sad to read that the number of vulnerable people, in different societies, has grown including in ours and, regretfully, their aspirations have been squashed by those who had promised them a better tomorrow.   Locally, one in every four persons is either living in poverty or gradually slipping closer to the poverty trap, living in the harsh realities of misery. 

Transparency International Chair José Ugaz could not have said it any better: ‘In too many countries, more people are deprived of their most basic needs and go to bed hungry every night because of corruption, while the powerful and corrupt enjoy lavish lifestyles with impunity’.   This statement is ever more real of the current socio-economic situation in Malta.  

This situation becomes even more despicable when one takes into account that currently Malta is experiencing a booming economy yet, unfortunately, the vulnerable cohort is still deprived of basic needs, including proper social housing and food.  The re-distribution of wealth is a huge responsibility and clearly government is failing.     

The Transparency International report is a strong black on white statement revealing what is common knowledge to all local citizens irrespective of their political bias and the foreigners visiting our shores for leisure or business.  The high level of corruption which has grasped this administration by the untouchable selected few, who are allowed to hover in the corridors of power, has reached unprecedented levels.

This report confirmed that Malta has lost 10 places on the corruption index and now Malta is ranking in the 47 place, a drop from the previous 37 post within the last twelve months.   The report is an eye-opener and should signal to all political parties, public institutions, church authorities, employers’/entrepreneurs’ bodies, trade-unions, civil society and the media that the people are watching. 

This brings me to the other report which will be the subject of a conference organised by the EU Commission later this year with the title ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’. The European Parliament has approved the report with 396 (61%) votes For, 180 (28%) Against and 68 (11%) Abstentions.  As a minimum, 289 votes were required for the report to be approved.  Malta’s six MEPs voted in favour of the report. 

In September 2015, President Jean Claude Juncker kick-started a wide debate across Member States’ authorities, social partners, civil society and others with the aim to reinforce the EU social agenda which has been savagely attacked in various Member States during the financial crisis that had hit the global economy since the summer of 2007.    The ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ is primarily aimed to have a floor of conditions for all EU citizens, ensuring fairness and social justice.

The ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ has been conceived with three objectives in mind:

-                      Equal opportunities and access to the labour market: This includes skills development, life-long learning and active support for employment. All these elements are indispensable to increase employment opportunities, facilitate transitions between different employment statuses and improve the employability of individuals.

-                      Fair working conditions: Needed to establish an adequate and reliable balance of rights and obligations between workers and employers. These ensure that there is evenness between flexibility and security to facilitate job creation, job take-up and the adaptability of firms, and promoting social dialogue.

-                      Adequate and sustainable social protection: This includes access to health, social protection benefits and high quality services, including childcare, healthcare and long-term care, which are essential to ensure a dignified living and protection against life's risks. This enables citizens to participate fully in employment and, more generally, in society.

Both reports are important, and should not remain statements of good intentions.  

While every effort should be made to stamp corruption of all sorts, the generated wealth is fairly distributed to ensure that social justice is not merely lip-service or a politically partisan stunt.  Vulnerable people, without distinction, deserve all the respect, guidance and assistance in cash or in kind, or both, to ensure that their quality of life is improved.        

With the publication of these reports, local citizens should voice their concern and dissent at the high level of corruption which has infested this government.  Corruption is the result of never-ending greed.  It’s time to oust the fat cats.