For us to be the choice of the majority, we need to earn that through our virtues and not because of Labour's deficiencies. We need to work on our virtues, revive the values on which they were built, and make sure we present these clearly to the public.
The PN's first virtue is its stand for a fair society. Labour has sent this country 30 years backwards in terms of fairness and justice. The latest news on the appointment of a Minister's daughter as Commissioner for Justice with only six months experience as a lawyer is not just an offence to all those who expect that justice is done and seen to be done, it is merely the latest incident in an attitude which has become a trend. Under my leadership, the PN will not give an inch to this government when it comes to corruption and nepotism. Every Minister or Labour MP will have to stand to the scrutiny of the highest standard expected from us in public life - and winning the election with a landslide victory does not change anything in that regard. Naturally, as PN leader I will expect the same from all PN MPs. We will have to lead by example.
Another virtue of the Nationalist Party is its ability to create prosperity. This Labour government is admittedly a champion for distributing the public good. Thousands of extra jobs in positions of trust, thousands of additional jobs for votes were created, which then increase the burden on our public finances. How about creating new wealth? That is not really their business model. All productive industries that are boosting our economy today are the result of the PN's vision when in government. This country will soon be calling for our vision again to create prosperity and we will not be found wanting. Under my leadership, the PN will present detailed plans to attract new industries to our islands. To do that we must use the PN model for gaming and financial services; we need to look ahead, 10 to 20 years from now, and anticipate the industrial trend. Malta is very well placed to be an innovation hub to entice the visitor to invest and expand networks from here to the world. We are small geographically but resourceful on all other accounts.
PN also means restoring Malta's reputation. This government has sold our reputation pretty cheaply. We are tainted over and over again with links to Azeri underhand money, to Panama Papers and to a myriad of potential explosive cases of sale of citizenship and the black avenues it harbours. The squeeze on European tax fairness is getting tighter. We will need to clean up the mess of this Labour government soon enough, or become unable to defend the goose that lays the golden egg: our tax competitiveness regime.
In the coming days ahead of the vote by Party organs and members, I will continue to meet people, knocking on doors and discussing what the PN stands for today and what it can stand for in the years to come. For as long as the citizens of this country look for justice, good governance or innovative ideas for our economy, they will find us there proposing alternatives and ready to lead.
We will be there for the families working round the clock but finding it hard to save for a family holiday - we need to expand their available income. We will be there for our young people and middle-aged workers - they are entitled to wider job availability and wider investment on human skills. We will be there for our older generations - their commitment has taken us where we are now, we owe them the comfort of seeing their loved ones prosper in a fair society.
We owe them all, voters from all backgrounds and party affiliation, a strong opposition to the misconduct of the present government and a serious alternative to it at the very first occasion. We owe them all our untiring efforts to become again the natural choice of the Maltese nation.
Chris Said is contesting the leadership election of the Nationalist Party