Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1124848
17 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 JUNE 2019 INTERVIEW one is having the power. The other is how you use it. 'Exces- sive power' wasn't invented by Joseph Muscat; he inherited something that had been there for a very long time. But to a very large extent, the exces- sive power which was always there, had in the majority of cases, been used well. It was not used almost as a tool of impunity. Personally, I am less worried about the Prime Min- ister's power to appoint a Po- lice Commissioner, than about the fact that the police com- missioner, once appointed, does not investigate cases; and instead hides a damning FIAU report in a drawer... Back to the leadership issue. Delia's removal will surely not solve the immediate problem, so long as the factionalism itself remains unresolved. How can these two factions be reconciled? Again I'd say, first take stock of the reality. This all started with the 2017 result, and pos- sibly even before. During the leadership campaign, the dis- cussion degenerated into ab- solutely unacceptable levels. Here, I have to say that no- body, absolutely nobody, from my campaign team ever passed one comment about any other candidate, or their canvass- ers. I only had one complaint about someone in my cam- paign office, who had shared a negative comment about a candidate. The moment I veri- fied the claim, I asked that per- son to leave. Other than that, what I was observing was extremely dis- heartening and disappointing. Truth be told, it was the first 'Facebook-fought' internal campaign. Social media has made a huge difference. It's an old maxim that, as a people, we think that – over four cheese- cakes and two coffees in a Val- letta café – we can solve all the world's problems: from what the Liverpool coach should do, to what the Pope should do, to what Donald Trump should do, etc. Take that concept, put it onto a social media platform… and it's free for all. Once a word is spoken, once hurt is caused, once an insult is hurled… if that is done in writing, it's public; and it leaves scars. Those scars have never fully healed. Unity is never 'one side joining the other'; it can only be achieved by a movement from both sides. But that's just an observation. The reality today, as I see it – and maybe I have a little advantage, in that I communi- cate with everyone, under this rainbow – is that the percep- tion of 'two factions' is an illu- sion. It's not the case. We have other pockets of disillusioned voters, who, for whatever rea- son, are unhappy with the PN. They are not unhappy with one side or the other; they criticise both. There are at least two or three of these, let's call them 'mini-movements'. Taken together, all these peo- ple are dissatisfied with the sit- uation as it is at the moment. The reality is not 'anti-Adrian' or 'in favour of Adrian'… It certainly looks that way, when PN exponents publicly call for Delia's dismissal… There are certainly a small number of detractors who don't like Adrian, and have said so from the beginning. But then… 'welcome to life'. Simon Busuttil had them, Lawrence Gonzi had them, Eddie Fenech Adami had them; and from what I read of the party's his- tory, George Borg Olivier had them too. They come with the job. It is part of the package. If one acts wisely, over the years they will tend to shrink. On the other side, there are those who were caught up by Adrian Delia's fiery presenta- tion. He has the gift of the gab; a very forceful personality; and he has a lot of very good quali- ties. A lot of people were excit- ed by that; and that's good. At the same time, however, there is a whole chunk of people in the middle. I would qualify them as people who have nev- er needed anything from the PN; but who, for various rea- sons, have always identified with the PN, and who are con- cerned. By talking only about those 'two factions' we run the risk of losing the others… Looking to the future. The PN has been redimensioned by this election, and AD and PD have been practically wiped out. This seems to rule out even the coalition possibility. Has the party resigned itself to its 'minority' status? The small parties' result was a bit of a surprise to me; I honestly thought PD would do better. I thought that, if we had a protest vote, a good chunk of it would go there. But it didn't; and even that is very indicative. I may be wrong; this is just an off-the-cuff re- action. But my gut feeling tells me these people still want to vote Nationalist. They are just waiting… for a sign from Heaven, perhaps. That, on its own, puts a hell of a responsibility on our shoulders, to all forget about our own individual ambitions, and get our act together. The message we have been relay- ing for the past two years is just not getting across. It is not exciting people; and it hasn't even kept our core vote intact. The message has to be differ- ent. At the same time, how- ever, people are also telling us: 'we did not go elsewhere'. To me, that is a sign of hope for the future. But it places an enormous responsibility on us today. What needs to be done, has to be done… now. Do you agree with Gonzi's call for Delia to submit himself to a new election? [note: this interview took place before Delia ruled out that option]. I agree, for sure, with the leadership subjecting itself to a vote of confirmation. Because we always say that 'the people are sovereign'. Now, the peo- ple have given us a message. It's not just a 'wake-up call'. It is almost a final warning. We were given a warning in 2013… for totally different reasons, granted, but a warning all the same. We were given another warning in 2017. And now, we have been dealt the worst electoral defeat since the war. This time, if we yet again miss that bus… I don't want to be dramatic, and say it will be the 'point of no return'. But what we do now, will definitely set the mark for what we are, and what we may become in the years ahead. Neither party can lay any claim to sanctity, or to immaculate correctness. We have long-term changes to make in the fabric [of our system], and perhaps past Nationalist governments could have done more