Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1075590
15 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 JANUARY 2019 NEWS ANALYSIS against him. He seems to believe that PN voters who intend abstaining be- long to one distinct category: the crowd which attends vigils for slain journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and whose antipathy for him pales in comparison to their resentment for Muscat. Delia may hope that the prospect of Muscat winning with a bigger margin may be enough to bring back some of these voters in line. To do so De- lia risks becoming more belligerent in confronting the government on cor- ruption. This also risks alienating oth- er categories of voters who welcomed Delia's less confrontational approach. Moreover, the PN is at risk of fur- ther losses to Labour or third parties simply because it is uninspiring, beset by factional infighting and its brand looks inferior to Labour's. Now the party will be facing a nationwide test at local council level where the par- ty's viability in regions like the south of Malta and Gozo will be severely tested. Trying too hard to appease one category of voters may well backfire amongst other categories. The defec- tion of Zejtun councillor Furtu Caru- ana could be symptomatic of the PN's disconnection from southern voters. The party cannot afford to take its own middle-of-the-road voters for granted. For, as happened in 2017, some may still defect to Labour which has positioned itself in the centre ground of Maltese politics. Moreover aspects of the Delia brand like the in- creased doses of moral conservatism may be off-putting to liberal voters whose values may be more in synch with Muscat's. Delia's calculation at the moment may be that he will only be able to impose his 'new way' on the party if he minimises his party's losses in next May's elections. Yet the few glimpses of the 'new way' we have is an inward- looking tribal affirmation of partisan identity. This impression was ampli- fied by Delia's defence of PN support- ers involved in a brawl with Labour Party supporters during Friday's live recording of Xarabank. "Labour sup- porters insulted and attacked our peo- ple, and what did they expect? For us not to defend our people? Yes, we'll speak out and make our voices heard and no one will shut us up," Delia said. Delia may have won the hearts of grassroot party activists through his insurgency against the party's 'old guard', but his brand may still lack both the sparkle and intellectual depth to win over M.O.R. voters. Delia may start making progress if he dedicates his energies to rebrand- ing his party and reclaim the middle ground of Maltese politics. That can also include confronting the govern- ment on corruption but he has to do so on his own terms and not to ap- pease a restricted constituency which keeps him from reaching out to other kinds of voters. jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt By taking the role of conciliator Delia risks committing the same mistake he has already committed in the past, periodically shifting from bellicose confrontation with the old guard to periods of reconciliation and inclusion Delia, adding that nobody would want to give advice to one's opponents "unless they have a hidden agreement to safeguard their common interests". But even Azzopardi subsequently declared that he had no problem with Delia. Beppe Fenech Adami who was rumoured to have been behind an attempt to convince MPs to call for Delia's removal was amongst party supporters who greeted the PN leader in B'Kara last week. The Sliema local committee was the only official organ which refused to approve a motion of support for Delia. On the other hand open calls for his resignation have been made by Occupy Justice – whose vigils are regularly attended by certain Nationalist MPs and present and former party activists. Delia is also a regular target of Manuel Delia, a former Austin Gatt aide who has now re-invented himself as a civil society activist and blogger. Delia's man Pierre Portelli repels one-time ghostwriter Manuel Delia, formerly the right-hand man to Nationalist minister Austin Gatt. CARTOON by Mikiel Galea