Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1225368
12 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 25 MARCH 2020 OPINION THE situation in Malta is not a good one due to the COVID 19 outbreak. Pressure is on the Government to take certain de- cisions. Decisions to safeguard the general health as well as the economy. Unfortunately, there will be an impact on both. There are pressures to safe- guard jobs so that no one will lose income in this time of crisis. The least one can do is utter useless comments, like Minister Silvio Schembri did. Last week, the Economy Min- ister said in Parliament that foreigners with work permits who lose their jobs due to the economic impact of the coro- navirus should go back to their countries. He was later forced to is- sue an apology: "My choice of words was unfortunate and I apologise if I hurt or offended anyone. Myself and the gov- ernment are united in our re- spect to all workers, no matter their nationality. I would like to assure anyone who thought otherwise that we will not be terminating any permits of third-country nationals who are in employment." 'Charity begins at home,' he said! What he doesn't realise is that the foreign workers who came here also spend money in Malta. And most of them con- sider Malta their home, if only temporarily. They pay taxes, rent or pur- chase a property, buy food- stuffs at local supermarkets, and they dined in local restau- rants, and use other services. All these leave profit, directly or indirectly, in the hands of locals, so the Economy Minis- ter did not realise that his com- ment would affect locals too. Is this maybe because he knows that they won't vote for him in the general election? A second argument is, are there enough Maltese who are skilled enough to take over the jobs vacated by foreigners? If there are, how many? If there aren't, how long is needed to train them? One must first see what jobs these are. EU nationals of course have a legal right to stay here. One must then determine what jobs third-country nationals do and in what sector they work in. It is easy to make a blanket com- ment. The Government boasts of a rapid economic growth with the direct or indirect contri- bution of foreign workers, launched the IIP scheme to at- tract foreign nationals to pur- chase Maltese citizenship and hence boosted the economy with foreign investment. That some Maltese are racists is known. However, such com- ments coming from the top echelons in Government were a surprise, and an unwelcome one at that. Everyone agrees that the Gov- ernment should safeguard its residents. And the vast ma- jority are Maltese. But we live in a globalised world where everything impacts everything and everyone. An example is the virus that is with us. Some argue that the Nation- alist Party should take a stand on immigration. One should be cautious both in comments and approach. First, there are both local and international legislation one must adhere to. Second, there is immigration and immigration. There is a difference between imported immigration and illegal immi- gration, so I think it's best not to further fog the issue for now. Certain comments hurt, espe- cially when there is a tense situ- ation as there is at the moment; when there is anger, justified or not, that the corona virus was imported by a foreigner who was deemed to be 'irresponsible'. In tense and uneasy situations there is no time for partisan politics or propaganda. No time to score political points. In a situation like what we are experiencing calm is the best thing. Having the Minister for the Economy and Investment make unwarranted comments and express unsavoury senti- ments in a moment like this, shows that he is either imma- ture, politically naïve or inex- perienced. I augur all those who con- tracted COVID 19 to get well and as a member of the oppo- sition, vow to help in any way I can. Ivan Bartolo Unwarranted comments Ivan Bartolo is a Member of Parliament for the Nationalist Party "My choice of words was unfortunate and I apologise if I hurt or offended anyone. Myself and the government are united in our respect to all workers, no matter their nationality. I would like to assure anyone who thought otherwise that we will not be terminating any permits of third-country nationals who are in employment."