Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1197486
14 HOW do we fix the Re- public? This is the same question that we posed a couple of weeks ago when the Faculty for So- cial Well-being hosted an open dialogue and over 100 people from various walks of life came to the University of Malta to discuss how best to untangle this socio-political mess. At this point I believe the first thing we need to hang on to is our anger and to avoid slipping into smugness. If we mellow down, that space will be filled by the in- solent forces saying "the economy is doing well" or "that Malta has always been like that and cannot change" mantra – and we are sim- ply back to square one: compla- cent and self-absorbed. These are seven quick reflections that should help us re-calibrate our Republic: 1. We lack direction, which is a crucial ingredient in a republic. This is a country destitute of lead- ership whether at local or national level, whether it is in the Church, the social partners or within po- litical parties. 2. Warming up to a neoliberal, value-less political discourse spelt disaster. These last years have left us completely devoid of unselfish and self-sacrifice politics and life became simply a case of personal advancement. We need a re- freshed direction. 3. We need to urgently ad- dress the misogynist po- litical landscape that has short-changed us of a great deal of latent poten- tial. We need more, many more, women at the helm. 4. It is not true that 'we' did not allow the institutions to work. It's those institutions that faltered that are culpable when they did not work because they lost their trustworthiness. A number of institutions like the National Audit Office, the Om- budsman, academia, civil society, the Standards Commissioner are working effectively because they have retained their integrity. 5. This easy access of citizens to politicians and people in power is lamentable and inexcusable, it needs to change. Our electoral law needs to be burnished from the bottom up. 6. The business community has too much influence on the politi- cal class. We need to create a fire- wall between the two. 7. I am of the opinion that healing our republic needs a thorough Constitutional re- think. There has never been such a timely opportunity to start this process which could look at the gaps we have in our governance and government and heal the pus that surfaced in our wounds. Andrew Azzopardi is Dean of the Faculty for Social Wellbe- ing, University of Malta THE Republic is pushing 50 and it urgently needs a new health regime. Unprecedented crises have shown that the two traditional political pillars are now standing on shifting sands. Smaller parties have not gained ground and in 2019, the far-right emerged as the third party. Most Maltese are fatigued by decades of polarised politics. In 2013 many voters were genuinely willing to suspend their disbelief and to hope for improved governance. In- stead, everything indicates there was a betrayal of trust. I am not surprised that many are facing ample dissonance. The crisis of public trust cuts across the political divide, where key figures seem to be trapped in hubris. At this point everyone seems to be talking about Constitutional reform, but we must tread carefully, lest we repeat Ita- ly's malaise after tangentopoli. The chilling accounts around the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia have rendered the rot transparent and indicate areas where parties must act. Court hearings exposed the incestu- ous relationship between politically exposed people and leading business players, and in turn, how these befriended individuals who dabble with the criminal under- world. The stories that are emerging are surreal and more sickening than we ever expected. On top of this, we were brutally awak- ened to the vulnerabilities of small states in the context of global wheel- ing-and-dealing. It is extremely easy to destabilise a microstate, exploiting the foibles of individuals in power. The Re- public's reputation is now severely tar- nished, and this impacts on our image and identity. But not all is dark and murky. In my- thology, the Phoenix regenerated from ashes. Our Constitution is based on sound communitarian and social prin- ciples and emphasizes fundamental rights and freedoms. The main ques- tions revolve around the composition and roles of Parliament, the Execu- tive and the Judiciary. Then there is a much-needed review of other articles that include those pertaining to Local Councils and Constitutional bodies like the Broadcasting Authority. Most of our challenges are linked to demographic pressures and smallness and so external models may not always fit like a glove. The state needs to re- connect with civil society and academ- ia on crucial issues like waste-manage- ment, mobility, the protection of the natural environment and the preserva- tion of urban and rural areas, including hamlets. Civil society is also crucial to sustain the pace of the civil rights agen- da and issues that are related to gender equity and social inclusion. In this hall of mirrors, we must step out of our echo-chambers. We need good leaders, a wider range of critical thinkers and public intellectuals and more trust-worthy media so that we are equipped to remain vigilant and avoid further delusions. We must all play a part to fix the Republic. Carmen Sammut is associ- ate professor and pro-rector of the University of Malta maltatoday | SUNDAY • 5 JANUARY 2020 LOOKING FORWARD 20 20 14. Malta's space strategy The global rush to send robotic probes to Mars will pick up pace this year as the Red Planet becomes humanity's next frontier. Malta plays no part in space exploration but the country will adopt its own space strategy in 2020 to capitalise on the commercialisation of the sector, which is predicted to generate $2.7 trillion worldwide in the next 30 years. 15. Gozo tunnel This should be the year when material progress is registered on the proposed tunnel between G o z o and Malta if the new prime minister keeps this top of his agenda. The government should be in a position to issue the conceptual design and international tender, while initiating the planning application. A tunnel cannot come too soon for many Gozitans but remains a big bone of contention for the environmentally conscious. 16. A voting cardinal Gozo Bishop Mario Grech will take up his new Vatican job as secretary general of the synod of bishops in August. Appointed to this role by Pope Francis last October, Grech will be leading one of the highest pastoral organs of the Catholic church. This could put him on the road to become cardinal, making him the first Maltese with the right to vote when a new pope is chosen. Carmen Sammut Andrew Azzopardi