Friday, 28th August 2009
The Nadir Of The Nationalist Party
When one analyses the present political situation in Malta, one cannot escape coming to the conclusion that the Nationalist Party has probably reached the lowest depths in its chequered history. Not only is the Nationalist Party in Government highly unpopular with the vast majority of Maltese citizens, not only has Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi abysmally failed to solve the country’s problems, we are also now witnessing things which serve to show that the Nationalist Party is today like a ship with a disabled rudder, moving in circles without any sense of direction and without any significant progress being registered.
Unemployment
The Nationalist Party has always boasted about its ability to generate employment. Indeed, this has been its “cavallo di battaglia” in many past General Elections. I was, therefore, shocked to read the following statistics : registered unemployment in July, 2009 increased by 1,563 when compared to the same month last year. In Malta, the registered unemployed amounted to 6,760 persons, whereas in Gozo these numbered 761. In the 12 months leading up to July, 2009, both Malta and Gozo experienced an increase in unemployment (1,488 in Malta and 75 in Gozo). These are shocking statistics! My only consolation is that Dr Joseph Muscat, Malta’s next Prime Minister, is as efficient as Dr Lawrence Gonzi is inefficient. Otherwise, I would despair of Malta’s future.
Dr Karol Aquilina
One of the surest signs of desperation in politics is when you fail again and again in most of what you do and then vent your frustration upon your main political adversaries. I regard the actions of Siggiewi Deputy Mayor, Dr Karol Aquilina, as a disgrace to Maltese politics. Let me make it clear that I am not attacking the personal integrity of Dr Aquilina. What I am attacking, without any reservations, are his negative initiative and other actions which will eventually lead to the Labour Party losing its Siggiewi Club. Indeed, his actions are reminiscent of the attack on the Labour Party in 1933 when the Nationalist Party did its utmost to destroy it. Let me remind Dr Karol Aquilina that in those dark days not only was the Labour Party not destroyed but it emerged even stronger and it was the PN which went down the path of decline from which it did not emerge for many long years. Political clubs are performing a very important function because political parties are giving a service to the nation. To deprive a political party of one of its clubs is an attack on the very basis of democracy.
A Discredited PN Media
If any further proof was needed of how the Nationalist Party has lost all credibility in the eyes of the general public, a recent Broadcasting Authority Survey should serve as an eye-opener. This shows a steep decline in the size of the audiences of Net TV and Radio 101. I am not surprised as who wants to waste his/her time swallowing the nonsensical fiction of these two PN media entities? Today, people are educated enough to see through deceptive propaganda. People want the facts and not news and current affairs programmes which first have to pass through partisan political party filters. For how long do Dr Lawrence Gonzi and his clique think that they are going to go on kidding the people? The writing is on the wall, Dr Gonzi. You are yesterday’s politician, yesterday’s leader, make way for that person who is equipped to solve today’s problems and those of tomorrow : Dr Joseph Muscat.
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Comments
You could have asked me directly!
One has to mention several good things which the NP has done over the years otherwise why would it be elected and reelected since 1987 save for a brief interlude by the MLP for 22 months?
How can one attribute anything positive to the LP when it is widely known as 'the partit tal-LE'? When the LP starts taking a positive attitude, then sometime in the future some positive things may be attributed to it.
You know very well and it probably upsets you terribly that the 'new' Labour has found it necessary to import old faces from their forgettable past and wants to convince us that the LP is changing its course.
Yes, indeed it is. It is going back to the old ways while it parades Joseph as the new messiah just as it did when Alfred Sant became leader. The novelty is fast fading away, no new policies and solutions are forthcoming and very rapidly it is trudging along the same ruts of the bad old policies.
Just imagine how much of your time and mine would be saved if Labour were a trusted and proven party!?
As for Alfred Sant, how was Labour "defeated" in 2008?
To which depths did the PN descend to "win"?
Don't you have something more interesting to do rather than waste time trying to argue wth Martinelli and De Martino? It's useless. Read their comments in all articles and you won't find one single comment saying something negative about PN and positive about PL, so there is no credibility in what they ay.
""Ahna ma nistghux inlahhqu mal-hajja" - Giovanni DeMartino, 31st August, 2009." - another example of malicious spin when anyone with an acceptable IQ level would instantly recognize that Giovanni DeMartino's tongue was firmly embedded in his cheek when he made that statement.
Not only that, DZM failed to quote the whole sentence, but instead he stopped where he managed to convey the exact opposite meaning of Giovanni's comment.
Nobody is laughing Des, except you at your own twisted kind of humour.
If Des needs an explanation, Mr. DeMartino wanted, and succeeded, in tearing apart comments like 'we have never been so hard up' - a favourite one by Labour supporters, while they themselves, can afford to spend extended holidays abroad!
Honesty is the best policy, I was taught once, but apparently in certain circles, this adage is unknown.
Any further comment would be superfluous.
If Des is laughing, he must be laughing at his own jokes.
I hope you enjoyed your Bavarian alps sojourn. May the of the Alpian fresh air keeps your head cool! LOL
When someone joins a privileged group of writers whether in blog form or otherwise, one expects a certain level of language skills which, no doubt DZM possesses, but more importantly, the prudence of not insulting the readers' intelligence.
My first observation is DZM's reference to the PM's and the NP's lack of popularity. Let me remind the talented writer that most, if not all governments who happen to be saddled with the depth and length of a world recession, become unpopular not deservedly, but through the lack of understanding of the cause and effects of a recession.
The Opposition naturally will pounce on a situation like this and constantly focuses on the negative and conveniently ignores, or worse, misinforms about all that is positive such as Malta faring much better than other countries in today's circumstances. On one hand, it criticizes the government for not doing enough (like what?) while on the other, accuses the government of spending too much and increasing the deficit. The Opposition becomes an armchair critic, offering no solutions because there are none, but it is not about to admit it!
Continued
Then comes the unemployment issue. DZM's gall is unbelievable and why he even brings the subject up is beyond comprehension. True, unemployment has risen, but please tell me which country has not experienced the same, and by the way, much worse statistics? How much higher would unemployment have risen had the government not intervened and helped the manufacturing industry through loans, grants and retraining programmes for any employees who would have otherwise become redundant? When one considers the unemployment statistics in North America alone where rates have exceeded 10%, why is Malta's 8% so unacceptable? What would the LP have done were it in power? Or, is it another one of Joseph's secrets?
But the icing on the cake is DZM's remark about Joseph being as efficient as Dr. Gonzi's inefficiency!!! Did not expect that one from DZM. He, in effect is telling us that Joseph, at best, would be as effective as Dr. Gonzi! Another one for the marines.
Comes the Siggiewi LP club issue - already answered by Giovanni - how can the LP keep something which never belonged to it? Perpetuate the scandal? Is the LP afraid of more of the same to come?
Continued
The Nationalist Party media did its job when it was most crucial for the country and it is a pity that it does not maintain as effective tools as the LP media does. But, it is a priority issue and for a change, I agree with DZM that the NP audience has shrunk to unacceptable levels. But, let me view this statistic from a slightly different angle. It is a known fact that Nationalist supporters (voters) never really depended on what they heard on NP media but rather on what they heard from Super 1 and Radio 1 ! NP voters do not have to rely on visual and audio presentations but on what they see and read. Surveys of five years ago did not show much difference than recent ones but remember that the NP had won the election with some 13,000 vote advantage.
So while DZM spins and uses statistics which sound good on surface and gives the impression that the NP is in ashes, let me forewarn him that from the ashes may rise another Phoenix in time for 2013.
What will LP's excuse be then?