Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1268420
PHOTO BY JAMES BIANCHI 8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 JULY 2020 INTERVIEW When submitting your nomi- nation for deputy leadership, you said you wanted to 're- new this party, strengthen the movement, and strengthen the country'. Yet with the situation that has engulfed the National- ist Party, the reality is that La- bour has never been stronger than it is today. Do you see your position, then, as counterbal- ancing this lack of any exter- nal pressure on government? Is it a case of the Labour Party wanting to provide opposition to itself? Not exactly, no. Or rather… not only. I myself do not depart from the premise that 'there is no op- position in the country'. It is true that, on a party-political level, the traditional 'opposition' does not really exist… in the sense that the people who should be pro- viding a credible, structured op- position, are instead focusing on 'power games' within their own party. And I don't think that the government is to blame for this situation. But it doesn't mean there is no opposition at all. On the level of civil society, and the constant scrutiny of the media, and other entities… the role of opposition is still being fulfilled, even if not on a party-political level. As for your question of wheth- er the Labour Party sees its role as 'opposing government', how- ever… no, that's not how I see it myself. Yes, the Labour Party should also scrutinize the ac- tions of government; it should be pro-positive, and even critical, where necessary. But my vision is for the party to gradually evolve into a stakehold- er in its own right, distinct from government. We need to create adequate policy fora, which can attract people to participate in policy discussions… so that the government knows that, in the Labour Party, it has a stakeholder that is there to deliver its message – or even its criticism – in a way that is genuine, and addressed towards doing good for the coun- try. Nothing more, and nothing less. Coming back to your political programme: it is divided into three distinct spheres: 'party, movement, and country'. The concept of the Labour Party as a 'movement of progressives and moderates' was first coined by Joseph Muscat: who has since been replaced by Robert Abe- la. Has the leadership change impacted this 'movement' con- cept? Is the Labour Party still 'progressive' today? Without a doubt, the Labour Party's agenda remains a progres- sive one… though it naturally de- pends on what the individual per- ceives a progressive agenda to be. But despite the fact that there has been a change in leadership, the government remains bound by the same electoral programme. It is committed to implementing the same electoral pledges. Even during the covid months, we saw how those pledges con- tinued to be implemented; and even now, we have to ensure that the entire manifesto keeps being implemented in full. And unless there are discussions to the con- trary in future – which I don't see happening – this will not change. So yes: I consider myself one of the main… I won't say 'defenders', but one of the main 'promoters' of the concept of a movement. For a political party to aspire to have the support of a majority of the electorate, you need to formulate policies that can somehow appeal to that majority. That is precisely what the La- bour Party has succeeded in do- ing in recent years; and that is what I intend it to keep doing. It has to be a continuous process. We have to maintain a consistent outreach; to keep meeting and talking to people from different walks of life; to formulate poli- cies that people can identify with, which can then be transmitted in the form of a political mani- festo… as we have already done, even until very recently, in the local council elections. That is why, as I said earlier, I see the Labour Party evolving into a major stakeholder, that can deliver its message, or crit- icism, in a way that is distinct from government. Because this is something that is often mis- understood here: governments are distinct from political parties; but a government is elected from a party platform… not the other way round. The vision you outline implies 'continuity' from the Muscat era: which was also prom- ised by Robert Abela, before winning the leadership elec- tion last January. Yet as we all know, the Muscat era actually ended under a cloud of scandal and controversy. What about the darker aspects of Muscat's legacy? How does Labour in- tend to deal with the phantoms of its recent past? When you analyse what Robert Abela said, and what he has done, since becoming Prime Minister… there was a lot that was positive in the previous administration, and yes: it merits continuity. If you look at Malta's economic growth over the past seven years; or the fact that the word 'unem- ployment' has vanished from the national vocabulary… At the same time, however, the Prime Minister was also resolute that the decisions which needed to be taken, were taken. I think it is now clear in everyone's mind that the Prime Minister is not shying away from taking all the The sole contestant for the position of Deputy Leader for Party Affairs, former Labour Party president DANIEL JOSE MICALLEF, outlines his vision for the future of an equally 'unopposed' Labour Party. But how will he tackle the many unresolved issues that still haunt Labour from its previous administration? Distinguishing between 'party' Raphael Vassallo rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt