We can argue for many hours on the people who were awarded Malta’s highest honours on Republic Day. It is a tradition that people who have done something for the country get their moment of recognition on 13 December each year, and it is also a tradition that while, for some, there is unanimous consent that they deserve the title, for others it is not so clear-cut.

This is mostly so for people who have a political background. Often, one tends to be blinkered when arguments in favour or against are made. This clouds one’s judgment when making such assessments.

For the rest of the awardees, the appreciation for their endeavours in their respective fields, wide-ranging as they are, is undisputed, and it feels good to know that so many Maltese out there have made a name for themselves, and also for the country, in the best sense of the word. Too often, Malta’s name has been disgraced by individuals and their behaviour, earning them titles that shamed them and the country; when someone makes us proud by what he or she does, it is a breath of fresh air.

There are, then, some questions that come to mind each year.

Is there some kind of political balance that is taken into consideration, with care being taken that the awardees come from various sides of the partisan spectrum and that, if someone from one side is to be awarded, then every effort is made for someone from the other side to get the same acknowledgment?

One also wonders why it also takes so long for people to be given such an honour. For example, this year Brother Edward was given the award at the age of 98 when he has been known for his kindness, generosity and care for the thousands of students who passed under his care at De La Salle College for decades.

Why wait so long? Isn’t there a risk, then, that it will be too late? This year, to put you in the picture, three people were given the award posthumously. They will never know that the country was proud of their achievements.

We have also noticed that there is an absence of young people in the list. Not all biographies given by the Department of Information last Tuesday contained the year of birth of the awardees, but from what we know about them they are all in what is usually described as a venerable age.

It was observed that only one of them was born in the 1970s, another was born in the 1960s, and the rest were born before, during or just after the Second World War.

This means that, at least this year, there was no recognition for anyone from the younger generations. Only one of the 17 awardees is younger than 50. Is it possible that there was no-one born in the 1980s and beyond who deserved to have a pin placed on the left lapel by the President of the Republic?

Is this the message that we are sending to our young people? That their efforts are not deserving of the country’s gratitude?

Maybe this is something that the authorities responsible for this award will keep in mind when 13 December comes again in 2023.