Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1372546
Owen Bonnici is Minister for Research, Innovation and post- COVID-19 Strategy Owen Bonnici 12 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 MAY 2021 OPINION THAT the Nationalist Party is in an acute mess is self-evident and crystal clear. What for me is not clear is why people from within the Nationalist Party, including some people whom I highly respect for their intelligence when it comes to their profes- sional life out of politics, can- not see what is staring directly in their face. It could be that they are caught in the proverbial echo-chamber perpetuated by the so-called 'Simon Busuttil/ Jason Azzopardi' clan. But how the Nationalist Party is, time and time again, missing the wood for the proverbial trees is something which I honestly cannot understand. The first step to find the prop- er answers is to pose the best question. I will certainly not do that for the Nationalist Party, nor will I indulge in giving my honest assessment of what tru- ly motivates the Busuttil- Azz- opardi clan to act the way they act. Probably whatever I say will be interpreted wrongly any- way, or worse still, some will also go at length to say that it's all a part of a reverse psy- chology-induced plan to push forward one thing which in re- ality means another. So on this point, I will say nothing. What, however, concerns me as a Maltese citizen is the nega- tive impact that the Nationalist Party is putting on our country as a direct result of their ac- tions. Actions which are sole- ly motivated by the supreme arrogance with which Busut- ti-Azzopardi look at the world outside the confines of their own clan and the false sense of comfort the echo-chamber gives them. Let me mention two exam- ples. Firstly, the cruel bashing which Malta receives in the European Parliament every number of months, with the Busuttil-Azzopardi clan gladly fanning the flames and jump- ing with immense pleasure and joy each time this happens. On this point, I will repeat what I have always said in the last months and years. There is no country which is perfect and I can say a lot of things about a lot of countries making up the EU family or the European continent as a whole. Yet, I still have to see another example of countries which are subject to the treatment which Malta is being afforded from time to time in the European Parliament. What's worse is that this treatment is spurred, triggered and pushed forward by the Na- tionalist Party's own elected representatives. The people out there have long realised the hypocrisy of it all. The Nation- alist Members of the European Parliament are tough on their own country, but completely weak when other countries are concerned. They do not on- ly blink an eye at what other countries do, but they quickly come out to defend them on the European scene for reasons which they know very well. Now, if Bernard Grech fails to understand that all this ir- responsible harming of our country is pushing people away from the Nationalist Party in droves, then I honesty do not know what to say. The second example. The Na- tionalist Party have taken the conscious decision to make rule of law and good govern- ance issues their main battlec- ry. In fact, this has been the on- ly issue they have been pushing forward time and time again, with all their might. Their message on rule of law and good governance is very clear and direct: that under a Labour government, the rule of law has been thrown to the dogs. They have not contented themselves with making those statements at home, but went as far as pushing this message forward with all their might everywhere around the world. While, as I have said before, I will not make any pronounce- ments on why this strategy is bound to fail from the word go, what interests me most as a Maltese citizen is the harm, once again, which is being caused on the international scene to our country. While history teaches us that there are events and episodes in any administration under the sun which deserve scruti- ny and legitimate criticism, it is a whole different matter to throw away the baby out with the bathwater. That is what the Nationalist Party is doing time and time again to the disdain of the majority of the population. All you need to need to look is at the recent judgment of the Court of the European Union on the justice reform of 2016 as a clear example – it completely discarded Simon Busuttil's and Jason Azzopardi's arguments, and the Maltese government won the case hands down. Since then we heard absolute- ly nothing from those two PN exponents. Truth is that Labour govern- ments delivered much need- ed reforms in all major fronts and those improvements and changes are still underway across the board at impressive speed and efficiency. It has been said that in poli- tics, sunny days and rainy days can change very quickly. That is true, and we all have to keep that in mind, with the neces- sary humility and a deep sense of service in order to pay back with good work the trust that the people have given us. The trust of the people Simon Busuttil (left) and Jason Azzopardi (right)