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18 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matthew Vella MANAGING EDITOR Saviour Balzan Letters to the Editor, MaltaToday, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Letters must be concise, no pen names accepted, include full name and address maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 MAY 2019 24 May 2009 Gonzi threatens reshuffle in case of massive defeat LAST Monday's Cabinet meeting was domi- nated by a sober presentation of the 'negative' showings in the polls for the Nationalist Party, during which Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi underlined the great difficulty in bringing out the Nationalist vote. Cabinet ministers were secretly not surprised at the outcome, although many were report- edly angry that Gonzi will be blaming them for the expected negative electoral result on June 6. "He informed us that he would be con- strained to consider a Cabinet reshuffle if the result turns sour," MaltaToday was told. Gonzi presented disheartening results and urged ministers to get involved in the cam- paign and take part in door-to-door visits to get the vote out. The privately commissioned survey has revealed the defiance of thousands who will stay in on election day. But with a one-seat majority in parliament, and so many former Cabinet ministers close to complete disenchantment and detachment from the party, Gonzi's options for a reshuffle appear close to impossible. Former Cabinet ministers Jesmond Mugliett and Ninu Zammit are especially annoyed at the way they have been treated by the Prime Min- ister, when he dropped them from the Cabinet after his March 2008 victory at the general elections. Nationalist backbenchers Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando and Robert Arrigo are also angry that they have been ostracised or sidelined. The 2004 electoral loss at the European elec- tions, which saw the PN down at their lowest with 39.5% of the vote, was followed by an internal report authored by Godfrey Grima. With few of the report's recommendations taken up, PN bigwigs are expected to point their fingers at Gonzi for the expected defeat in June. Many ministers and parliamentary secretar- ies secretly blame Gonzi for the dire state of affairs – his persistence on the higher electric- ity and water tariffs in the face of a global eco- nomic slowdown has been picked upon by the Labour campaign team, and now most Nation- alist MPs are bracing for the worst. One member described themselves finding "a wall of anger" among the traditional middle- class core of Nationalists as popular discontent keeps overshadowing the campaign. Not even the intensity of this year's negative campaigning appears to have made inroads with this class of voters. According to the survey presented to the Cabinet, carried out by a private company for the PN, Labour is tipped for a landslide victory. ... MaltaToday 10 years ago Quote of the Week A 'choice between Muscat and Delia'? Yes, and no Editorial "Our parties are sourcing their funds from big businesses. We cannot speak of development and environment if we don't address this." Nationalist MP and MEP candidate David Stellini DURING Wednesday's last campaign debate between the two main party leaders, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat reiterated his line that this European election is 'a choice be- tween himself and Dr Adrian Delia'. Muscat argued that, as he was in the mid- dle of his second term as Prime Minister, and this was also Dr Delia's first test, it was only natural that the electorate would judge their respective performances. Strictly within the context of European elections, Muscat's reasoning is plainly flawed. Voters in this election are choosing candidates to represent them in the European Parliament. Some will surely follow their par- ty allegiance to the letter; but others may base their votes on specific concerns or issues that have nothing to do with either party leader. Nonetheless, it would be futile to deny that – from a broader perspective – there is some truth to his argument. The two parties' campaigns can be seen to be reflections of the stamp that Muscat and Delia have placed on their respective parties. Delia's misguided at- tempt to turn this election into a 'referendum on abortion', for instance, is consistent with his earlier emphasis on safeguarding Malta's 'traditional values'. It is a trajectory Delia has chosen for the party as a whole; and given that his chances of success hinge on his abil- ity to retain large swathes of his party's tra- ditional voter-base – which includes a small but strategically crucial liberal faction – it remains a mystery why Delia would choose a policy direction that is bound to push away a number of former PN voters. Indeed, today's elections are expected to de- termine Delia's own immediate future. He has already stated that he will stay on as leader, regardless of today's results; but surely, he must know that this is not his call to make. Ultimately it is the Nationalist Party that will decide whether to retain him or not: a decision that could be taken, at any moment, by an Extraordinary General Council. All the same: if Adrian Delia maintains the status quo by holding onto the PN's third seat, despite a greater majority for Muscat, he will (justifiably) argue that he won the right to fight on until the 2022 election. If Labour wins a fourth seat, on the other hand, Delia's problems will intensify under pressure of a rival faction in the PN that never accepted his democratic victory as the PN's leader in the first place. That infighting, which has already visibly hamstrung the Nationalist Party, will impart the message that the PN will remain unfit to govern by 2022, and that it will need a radical re-invention to define itself ideologically, and place itself as a proper option for a govern- ment-in-waiting. But Delia also came to the role with bag- gage. Media reports have claimed that a Jersey bank account, held in Delia's name, received £349,000 in the form of cheque and cash deposits. The story dates back to the early 2000s, when it has since been alleged that Delia was involved, directly or indirectly, in the laundering of proceeds from a Soho pros- titution racket. The prospect of a magisterial inquiry land- ing the Opposition leader under criminal inquiry is already toxic in itself: how can the PN propose as prime minister somebody who could be under investigation for money laun- dering? Additionally, the PN could be facing yet more of a battering when the Egrant inquiry is published in full, if it reveals the extent of the machinations that led to an alleged frame- up, and how the toxicity of partisan journal- ism led to the discrediting of the Nationalist Party – and, ironically, the creation of a more formidable Labour Party. Meanwhile, Joseph Muscat might be pre- paring to pack his bags and seek greener pastures elsewhere, possibly in the heart of Europe. But he will have left behind him a formidable legacy that turned the Labour Party into an electoral machine that cannot be beaten: unless its Opposition is built on strong values, tolerance, environmentalism, and a commitment to decent politics. This, however, could prove a double-edged sword for the Labour Party. Indeed, a strong showing in today's election should also serve as a forewarning of trouble ahead. Muscat was unwise to invest so much of his own persona into Labour's election winning machine. Labour's latest billboard – a close- up of Muscat's face, with the words: 'Trust me once more' – is too much of a direct echo of the PN's ill-fated 'GonziPN' strategy in 2008. That strategy paid dividends in the short- term: the PN won the 2008 election with that slogan… but at an exorbitant cost. All it took for the PN to lose its only electoral stratagem – and, by extension, two general elections in succession – was for its leader to lose his po- litical lustre. Muscat may appear far from sharing that fate right now; but he is poised (according to the script) to step down before the next elec- tion. Under those circumstances, Labour will have lost its only real political trump-card. And like the PN, it might take years, if not decades, to recover. In a sense, then, this election will be a de- ciding factor for both parties. The rest will soon be history.