Anton Agius

In the run up to the election on 3rd June, I had written two articles declaring that even though I was not a PN sympathiser or member, I intended to vote for the PN in order to get rid of Joseph Muscat’s party. The electoral result has not changed my opinion regarding the need to do away with Muscatism. I do not intend to seek membership of the Nationalist Party, so my contribution should be taken for what it is – the view of somebody external to the PN, but who is very concerned about the recent political events which have seen Muscat’s party gain an unprecedented majority.

So far, I have not been impressed by the handful of names that have been touted by the press as possible PN leadership contenders, and my take on these individuals is that none of them will manage to achieve the daunting tasks which the Party has to face. I am talking about tasks, because the new leader will have to re-invent a Party, which lost its raison d’être after 2003 (when Malta voted to accede to the European Union), renew the Party ideologically and build strategic alliances which are electorally stronger than Muscat’s, to eventually win the election in 2022.  

A Nationalist win in 2022 is far from a foregone conclusion, given the result of the last election. This cannot be achieved if the Nationalist delegates opt for more of the same; however there is in my view a courageous solution which could (if met with enough support) cause a significant change to the Maltese political scene.

Politics in Malta has so far been an extension of the village clubs (każin) dominated almost exclusively by males, both major political parties have a male-centred leadership, women are relegated to occupying comparatively minor roles, such as Secretary General or perhaps Minister but nothing more. I have voluntarily left out the office of the President, because despite the fact that the President is the Head of State, his/her role is considered apolitical and is normally a form of glorified retirement.

Fifty years of male dominated politics have led to an overly confrontational political system, which is often an extension of the intra-village band club rivalry that leaves no room for compromise. It has led to an ecological catastrophe and to inertia on the issue of a full overhaul of the Constitution and to the governance crisis, which to be fair did not start with the election of Joseph Muscat to Prime Minister.

In other words, a political scene dominated by males has led us nowhere and it is high time that the major political parties (at least the PN) seriously consider electing the first female leader. This might seem “revolutionary” for Malta, but is normal (or relatively normal) practice in the civilised world; Angela Merkel (leader of CDU and Chancellor), Helle Thorning Schmidt in Denmark (leader of the Social Democrats 2005 – 2015 and ex-Prime Minister), Nicola Sturgeon (leader of the SNP and Scottish First Minister), and so on.

I strongly believe that the PN should consider investing in a female Party leader and it should do this not as a token gesture but because they have the ideal person to get them out of their current predicament. This person is Roberta Metsola.

She is by far the most qualified for the post on grounds of her intellect, political experience and dynamism. She is the only one who is capable of energising the Party. She has admittedly declared that she would not like to quit her current post before the expiry of her electoral mandate in 2019. However, I believe that if the momentum builds around this nomination, it will not be difficult for her to convince herself of the necessity of her candidacy.  

By electing Roberta Metsola as leader (and Leader of the Opposition), let me repeat that this would be an absolute first in Maltese politics, and the PN would be giving an important signal that it is shedding its “conservative” skin. I also believe that with Roberta Metsola at the helm of the party it will be easy to mobilise the electorate on Election Day. Can anyone, in all honesty, imagine people being mobilised on Election Day (queuing at the polling station) to vote (to de facto) elect Claudio Grech, or Chris Said as Prime Minister?

Their election as PN leader will perhaps energise the party’s inner circle, if at all, but beating Muscat’s party will require more than that. Can you imagine any of these two in a face-to-face debate with Muscat or with his successor? Will a neophyte like Adrian Delia manage to outwit a seasoned politician like Muscat? It is highly unlikely. Not to mention the fact that in a fit of random name pooling, some have also mentioned Franco Debono… seriously?

On the other hand, the election of Roberta Metsola to lead the PN will start a chain reaction, which will lead to the Party’s overhaul. The first step in this overhaul is the ideological realignment of the Party. There are those who have advocated a return to conservatism, which is indeed a dangerous pitfall that should be avoided because it risks alienating the liberal vote and relegating the PN to irrelevance. I think that for the Nationalist Party to beat Muscat’s Party, it has to be open to alliances with civil society and with the Greens. For this to happen it has to be true to the de Gasperi variant of Christian Democracy i.e. that of a Party of the centre, but which looks to its left. This should also help the Nationalist Party outline a narrative different to Muscat’s, based on social and ecological justice and taking the centre stage on the advancement of Civil Rights, while ensuring that there is no roll back on the recently acquired civil rights.  

Given that Roberta Metsola does not carry as much baggage as the other names which have been thrown into the fray by the media, it should be easier for her to form an alliance with the Greens. People who like me consider themselves social-liberals have a lot in common with Christian politicians such as Enrico Letta or Rosy Bindi. Pope Francis’ position on, among other issues, ecological justice (see for example the encyclical Laudato Si’) could be useful to start building bridges between progressive Christian elements within the Party and the Greens.  

However, as recent events have shown, the formation of an alliance with the Greens cannot happen at the 11th hour but must be the natural evolution of a longer-term process. The Greens will only be attracted to this alliance if there is a common front on the overhaul of the Constitution (still a legacy of the colonial era) including the much-awaited electoral reform. This might not go down well with certain people within the Nationalist Party’s core; however, the choice is either reform or more years of Muscatism.

I would like to remind the Greens that their voter profile is closer to that of certain Nationalists rather than that of the core Labourites and an alliance is culturally more probable with the former. This is by no means an anomaly; in fact, in Finland the Blue-Green coalition is stronger than the Red-Green alliance (see Antti Alaja on www.socialeurope.com, 30 November 2011), for pretty much the same reasons.

In my view, this Alliance is crucial to the future of the Nationalist Party, because defeating populist leaders, who enjoy the demi-god status with most of the electorate, is extremely difficult. See Orban in Hungary, Erdogan in Turkey, and Berlusconi in Italy. Defeating this type of leader requires a particular strategy, which includes wide alliances and a leadership which is antithetical to that of the populists, based on less machismo, on soft power and on the definition of an appropriate political platform. This is the major reason, why I have decided to single out Roberta. Her composure, gravitas and manners are the antidote to Muscat’s arrogance and over cockiness.

The Nationalist Party has two choices in front of it, continue with business as usual, keeping the current political structures and hoping that Muscat’s Party makes a number of faux pas, somewhere along the line and alienates a huge chunk of the electorate and risk 20 years of Muscatism (not necessarily with Muscat at the helm), or else muster enough courage to cause the real earthquake in Malta’s political system, which will have to start with the party rallying behind Roberta Metsola ... is the PN up for the challenge?

The struggle is definitely uphill, but as Barack Obama put it at a DNC meeting in Washington in autumn 2007: “I am standing here today… because somebody, somewhere, stood up for me when it was risky. Stood up when it was hard. Stood up when it wasn't popular. And because that somebody stood up, a few more stood up. And then a few thousand stood up... And standing up, with courage and clear purpose, they somehow managed to change...”

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