Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1071614
7 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 16 JANUARY 2019 NEWS ANALYSIS Muscat's words in defence of Delia's democratic mandate put short shrift of Delia's claim. Muscat may also be banking on the increased likelihood of De- lia surviving as a lame duck PN leader, who is perceived to be in cahoots with Labour by a seg- ment of PN voters. 2. Muscat wants to present Delia's story as a cautionary tale for switchers who were tuned off by the party's perceived de- tachment from popular senti- ment. Muscat may have a particu- lar category of PN voters who switched to Labour in 2013 or in 2016, when he attacks the mindframe of Delia's internal opponents. Some of these vot- ers may sympathise and even identify with Delia's personal plight but simply as a justifica- tion for their choice to cross over to Labour. This may explain why on Sun- day Muscat referred to the re- luctance of the party's old guard to vote for divorce after the 2012 referendum as an example of this anti-democratic mind frame. Muscat stretched the same ar- gument to link the same mind- frame to Simon Busuttil's obsti- nance when faced with a court judgement which effectively blocked an inquiry on Konrad Mizzi's and Keith Schembri 's Panama companies. This suggests that the kind of switchers he has in mind are not those turned off by corruption allegations but mostly those who have come to see in Mus- cat's Labour a re-edition of the more inclusive PN in the early 1990s before it was taken over by perceived and real cliques. The message Muscat wants to send is that even if Delia sur- vives, the Nationalist Party re- mains a deep well full of knives, where any attempt to change things from within is thwarted by an unforgiving old guard. In reality this sentiment ig- nores doubts on the effective- ness of Delia's own leadership and how tenable it can be in view of serious allegations, but it still resonates among a category of voters who over the years felt excluded from the party for a variety of reasons. They may well perceive De- lia to be another victim of the cliques which pushed them in to Muscat's embrace. 3. Muscat genuinely resents the anti-Delia faction and pre- fers Delia as PN leader. Muscat makes it clear that what hap- pens in the PN is not his busi- ness but his speech betrays his greater personal antipathy for the anti-Delia faction which has given him no respite on cor- ruption allegations even after the publication of the egrant inquiry's conclusions which ex- onerated him from one of the main accusations. For although under Delia the Opposition has not relented in its criticism of the Muscat ad- ministration in matters related to governance and the Panama aftermath, Delia's new way has also resulted in a thawing of re- lations between the leaders of the two rival parties, restoring a semblance of civil confronta- tion. Ironically this positive devel- opment on a national level has not been reflected in a greater tolerance for internal debate in the Nationalist Party, where Delia has embarked on the war path against "traitors", after the tenability of his leadership was questioned. What unites Delia and Muscat in their assessment of the situa- tion is that it ignores that a seg- ment of PN leaning voters who welcome Delia's less confronta- tional style have strong doubts on his effectiveness in leading a strong Opposition which keeps the government in check. Irrespective of the intentions behind Muscat's attack on the mainframe of Delia's antago- nists, Muscat is correct in his overall analysis of the political situation. "If the PN were in power right now, the economy and the en- tire country would have come to a standstill. If they are not capable of running an Opposi- tion, how can they be expected to run a country?" Muscat asks. Ultimately voters will be ask- ing which party is best suited to govern the country; a divided PN or a united government? The question for the PN is: Can it be ever seen as capable of running the country with Delia at its helm and does an alterna- tive leader who can do so even exist? Delia's mandate on Sunday The message Muscat wants to send is that even if Delia survives, the Nationalist Party remains a deep well full of knives, where any attempt to change things from within is thwarted by an unforgiving old guard Joseph Muscat genuinely resents the anti-Delia faction and prefers Delia as PN leader