Tista’ taqra dan l-artiklu bil-Malti
If this is not the boiling point, then I do not know what is. Robert Abela’s ill-judged replies to the driving licence scandal reeked of the rot that has long afflicted Maltese politics.
There it was, the Cosi fan tutti defence that was as remarkable in its brazenness as it was astounding in its crass stupidity. This is no scandal, Abela said. This is no sign of corruption. It is the way we do it.
On the one hand, it is reassuring to see commercial and civil society representatives coming down on the prime minister like a proverbial ton of bricks in a chorus of unanimous disapproval.
On the other hand, the protests tend to seem hollow given how, in many ways, Abela was… telling the truth. And there is the catch.
You see, Abela is not fibbing when he says this is how Maltese politics works. We all knew that. I just had a quick trek down memory lane on my blog, J’accuse, and noticed that I had been harping on about this particularity of the Maltese political system for over 15 years.
Barter politics is what I called it – trading in influence with a twist.
The PL/PN way of doing business (their business of politics) has meant that a large web of favours and bartering of positions of influence has slowly been woven into the very fabric of our political system.
People are in politics to have a say in this system. It is the only way to survive. Similarly, the connection to politics of citizens, small businesses and, of course, of the larger fish is solely dependent on getting a foot in the door of the barter market.
An oft-repeated slogan in one of Joseph Muscat’s masterful campaigns selling dreams was “Mhux lil min taf, imma x’taf” (it is not who you know but what you know). The key to entry into the New Maltese Dream would be skill, not patronage.
We all know where that one went. Flushed down the drains of forgetfulness the day after the elections’ results – meritocracy remained an empty dream of no consequence.
Yes, this is how we do it, and this is how we have done it for some time. Licences and permits, rubber stamps and benefits became currency within the world of political advancement.
To be part of the dream, you had to swallow any sense of pride (what is that worth anyway?) and accept subjugation in the barter system of promises.
The more people are pleased, the more votes are guaranteed. The more votes are guaranteed, the stronger the hold on power. The stronger your position in the corridors of power that distribute more dreams and promises, the more preferential treatment you get.
As this got consolidated, it became a matter of “treating our own well” and “fuck him, he is not on our side”, as we saw in the Mansueto WhatsApp chats.
Make no mistake. At the risk of becoming a pariah by repeating the same mantra that I have for years, I insist that this system is endemic across the board. Labour has simply honed it to perfection if there is perfection in evil corruption.
That, in fact, is how far Abela is correct- that this is how we do it. Where he is abysmally wrong, especially with his being a lawyer and prime minister, is in his hope that this in some way justifies what is, in effect, illegal behaviour.
Trading in influence has brought down greater men than Ian Borg and Abela (not that it would be hard to be greater).
Trading in influence, the business of barter politics, makes a mockery of democratic representation. It eschews any form of real representation and then proceeds to undermine the functioning of institutions.
It is a capital sin against the Rule of Law. We now have clear, irrefragable proof of the sick state of Maltese politics. This is how we do it, and we do it wrong.
“The PN must die” is a mantra I have been guilty of repeating for a long time. The time has come now to update it. The PLPN must die.
The behemoths of Maltese politics are long past their sell-by date. They only know how to “do it” by destroying our political and institutional fabric. The only way for them to redeem themselves would be to start from nothing. Tabula rasa.
That is how we should do it.
“Qu’ils mangent de la brioche“
A clear slate insinuates a new beginning, historically this rarely comes about without bloodshed or at least a serious uprising.
This is a high price to pay, is the population tired and angered enough to take that step? I dare say it is not.
Jiddispjacini ma naqbel mieghek xejn meta qed titfa’ liz-zewg partiti politici fl-istess keffa. Fi zmien Eddie Fenech Adami l-ghajta kienet : Drittijiet u mhux pjaciri. Fi zmien Gonzi, dan ried jeqred il-klijentalizmu mill-qiegh, tant li hafna Nazzjonalisti telqu lil partit ghax pretendew il-pjaciri. Anke President ta’ Malta Gonzi ghamlu mill-kamp oppost. Imbaghad tela il-Labour u l-klinjentalizmu u l-pjaciri li ma jisthoqqlokx poggihom fuq pedestal. Dan tal-lum huwa frott ta’ dawn il-principji anti demokrattici.
Jien nahseb li kollox gej min dawn l erbgha negozjanti li belghu kollox bhal Portelli, Bonnici , Polidano etc. Il kap jew mexxej irid ikun ta gazz u kapaci li jikontrola lil dawn l erbgha mejtin bil guh. Meta izomm ir riedni ta dawn, tikontrolahom u il bqijja tal poplu joqghod. Lil Robert Abela dawn riekbuh ghax il miserabli u giddieb Muscat hallihom jaghmlu li jridu u issa ma jista jaghmel xejn. Malta ghanda bzon urgenti ta kap gdid bil bajd biex forsi xi darba niehdu ir ruh li tlifna.
So long as we’re waxing Latin, panem et circences kept a far more egregeous system afloat for centuries, so never underestimate the selfish stupidity of the hoi polloi (yes, I understand I’m merrily mixing my Romans and Greeks, but yöu get the point).
NOW is the time to be seriously thinking of alternatives to the LP/PN duopoly..Only THEN can we start with a clean sheet in politics. Assuming, that is, that a new party won’t fall into the traps set by the so called “business” class.
Another incisive article which spells out exactly what any decent honest person believes in – the rule of law.
It is clear that the rule of law and the ethics which should allow it to operate without fear or favour has long since been cast aside.
It has now become almost an art form as demonstrated by the utter disregard for it by the current and previous Prime Ministers.
The most disappointing part is the immunity. People over the years have and will continue to err. However, when they err and are caught they should have the decency of resigning or, if not, they should be thrown out as, if not, leaders are complicit in their bad ways.
The excusing of bad actions by the Prime Minister is absolutely disgusting.
Dear Jacques this has been the Maltese way since even before Christ was born. Kursara u furbani.
Although politicians -both locally and abroad- tend to go out of their way to please their supporters, the present Labour Government has exceeded all acceptable limits and parameters of law. It built up a network of politically ‘trusted persons’ that has practically taken over the public service and makes a mockery of the rule of law.. In my opinion the Labour Government’s fundamental flaw lies not so much in the setting up of a customer care service which is beneficial for citizens, but in staffing the service with political yes men whose prime loyalty lies with the party in government. .
Although I agree with most of what you are saying, I cannot agree with your throwing the two major parties in the same boat. Should you put them on a scale, the PL far outweighs the PN when it comes to corruption. Corruption has always been there and will go on being present in the future, no matter which party is in government. Corruption starts with the common citizen , that citizen that has turned his vote into a coupon to be exchanged with something that he or she does not deserve, as soon as the election is over. We are the ones who start corruption at the lowest level, then of course the politicians will go higher to more rewarding fields. The PN had started to change the mentality of the common citizen, whereupon you could get what you needed, if you had a right to it, without having to resort to any Minister. The PL brought back the idea of knocking on the Minsiter’s door whenever you wanted something, whether you had a right to it or not, especially if you don’t have a right to it. Money talks louder than anything else, so the big businessmen befriend whoever has a chance of winning power. It is the duty of the politician to say no, but it is a very hard decision, even if it is the right one, and not many of our politicians have the necessary guts to say no! That is the dilemma! Once the common citizen stops asking for what is not rightfully his, then maybe, just maybe, the politician will think twice before going furhter afield!