Dr Simon Busuttil has gone to the crux of the matter in calling for not just the resignation of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, but in declaring above all that he is not fit for public office and should not even be considered to contest the next election, whether that is within a few weeks’ time or next year.

“Dear Dr.muscat, well done, hope you’ll keep working as you are, and you will be prime minister for a long time. Regards,” was the comment on an article about the swearing in of Dr Muscat back in March 17, 2013.

The sentiment has changed.  The turn-out of people on Sunday at Valletta must have lifted the aura off the much vaunted 36,000 votes and the two ill-gotten extra seats.   Whatever happened in March 2013, is long gone and past.  Since then the real Dr Muscat and cronies have been exposed for all well-meaning persons to see for themselves what was behind the campaign waged and what was in fact plundered by the current government.  The scene today is totally different but sadly, some people still refuse to accept the dis-loyalty and fear the loss of power, ignoring the sad and unbelievable condition he has brought our island to.  Prime among them are the labour candidates themselves, already seen campaigning from door to door and calling people to see if there is a favour they can do for them. They too should abstain en-masse from standing with this corrupt and indecent “Movement” that we now know, stands for deceit and greed. Those with some integrity have broken their ties, albeit far too few of them.

Not long ago the call was for the Nationalist party to do some soul searching and have a good look at why they had lost popularity the way they did.  For them, the result was an honest result in that the people were free to make their choice and could afford to vote for a change because they had been governed responsibly and respectably.  It was more about wanting a change of attitude than a change of direction.  In fact, Dr Muscat saw to it that there would be continuity of expectations for the standard of living but giving it a little more va va voom. 

Which has brought us to new lows which are not just incidental but endemic and viral.  To pretend that there is a legitimacy about what is happening is simply delusional.

Corrupting power all the way to Azerbaijan, Panama, the British Virgin Islands and the Pilatus bank, stopping only to fill the tank along the way, the prime suspects have revealed their real intentions for public office.  Anyone and everyone who was an enabler, by silence, by appeasement, by co-dependency, needs to leave with them.  They now need to be the ones to take a good, long, hard look at what they have just been a part of, the abuse they allowed and the harm caused to our island.  Their legacy is an economy now under serious threat, a divided country struggling with blind materialism and construction at any cost, falling indexes on transparency and equality for women, and above all, failed institutions which will need a radical re-instatement from top to bottom. 

Anyone waiting for the “proof” is like waiting for the husband to strike the fatal blow to this wife before believing he beat her.  This fits in with the way that women have been treated by this government, beginning with the shameful behaviour in Parliament during the vote of no confidence in Konrad Mizzi, towards Dr Marlene Farrugia and the chauvinistic tone of ridicule and insults towards serious journalists doing their job and as mentioned by Dr Simon Busuttil during the Xarabank programme, to his partner.   There is even a “department” to deal out the venom and the extent of this government’s influence and interference being what it is, they have ample resources to change the narrative and wait for the people to turn against each other instead of against them. 

Now the trumpets are sounded outside the walls of Jericho.  The Israelites marched around the walls once every day for seven days with the priests and the Ark of the Covenant. On the seventh day they marched seven times around the walls, then the priests blew their ram’s horns, the Israelites raised a great shout, and the walls of the city fell.   Presently, the precarious state in which we, as a country, are in, may seem insurmountable but the walls of Jericho fell, and they fell instantly.

We should not be discouraged or give up on what is right.  Fortunately for us, Dr Simon Busuttil leads by example and has an unwavering vision of what is needed at this crucial hour and he is also clear about the line between right and wrong, about what is unacceptable and can distinguish between what is criminal and not.

As Simon’s stature rises, we see Muscat’s not just falling rapidly but also taking others with him because they are all one and the same shady outfit inextricably linked to each other.  It is now impossible to separate Konrad Mizzi from Muscat, Muscat from Keith Schembri and each of them from their enablers and co-conspirators, from the mega-constructions given a permit, from the Projects Malta starting from Electrogas to Shangai Electric, to the alleged kick-backs from sale of passports, from the Zonqor American University, the privatisation of the 3 hospitals, Barts at Gozo and two ugly looking suitcases that any long-distance traveller staying in a five star hotel would never be seen carrying. 

I am sure that housekeeping at the 5 star hotel in St. Julians saw another set of suitcases than the relics Sayed Ali Sadr Hasheminejad was seen carrying out of Pilatus bank at Ta’ Xbiex but that’s another story.  The fair point is that nothing is what it seems with this government.  Empty bank accounts become a whole bank, 92.00 euros leads to USD I million, a holiday in Dubai leads to a Panama account, a trip to Azerbaijan to a well of oil and gas, and best in Europe to under investigation by PANA committee and a huge win to a good bit of advice to heed the writing on the wall and hand back the keys for good. 

From all the structures dismantled by this government, we are left with a stronger Nationalist party, who was itself, unsuccessfully dealt some blows to its finances, and the newly nascent #ForzaNazzjonali.  Let us not continue in our naïve and foolish way, of thinking that without the proper finances, without strong backing, they will manage to wave their magic wand and low and behold, all is back to normal and Busuttil is walking up the steps to Auberge de Castille.  The way back is hard, some might say it’s impossible, others can’t wait.  The wounds inflicted are deep and infected.  It is going to take some serious intervention to remedy and to recover.  And the fact remains, nothing is assured yet.  It takes a village.