Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1378870
15 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 MAY 2021 OPINION itable representative of Maltese interests in Europe. Saliba did not do that. His intervention was simply meant for his Facebook page and One TV, not to correct a devious effort by other MEPs in that committee. The chiding he got by Hohlmei- er was therefore entirely ap- propriate. Moreover, what was supposedly a defence of Malta's interest by Saliba turns out to be a further shooting in the foot of Malta's standing in the Europe- an Parliament. With his childish reaction to his hurt bullish feel- ings, the MEP has now put the matter higher up in the institu- tional echelons by invoking the Socialist's help and the attention of President Sassoli. What could have been a feeble attempt with little attention and no follow-up, or a simple ex- change of views, is now becom- ing a matter of high attention within the ranks of several polit- ical groups. Agius Saliba must understand that he needs to invest more to deliver results for Malta. This is not easy-peasy work like getting Forum Żgħażagħ Laburisti to wear the 'I'm in' shirts for that crook Joseph Muscat. Being an effective MEP takes more than image. It requires some sub- stance. But maybe Agius Saliba does not really need to change things in Europe. He is probably content with inciting the deeply set impression that all the world has an axe to grind against Mal- ta, because we are 'the best in Europe'. Best in Europe we are not, espe- cially when the MEP in question was the best buddy of the chief of staff that had been covering tracks and interfering in inves- tigations concerning the kill- ing of Daphne Caruana Galizia. What credibility can Agius Sal- iba have in such a debate when he is behind the same enterprise that brought us to the brink of a Moneyval downgrade and the collapse of our institutions? The effort by the political group Renew Europe with its 98-strong MEPs to instigate questions on Malta's rights to use EU funding by linking this to the assassina- tion of Daphne Caruana Galizia is worrying and merits no sup- port. We should indeed fend off any such attempt to denigrate the good work of hundreds of public service officials which commit much dedication to en- suring that Malta makes good use of European opportunities. Sure, we can and we must do much better, but not on the fraud front as alleged by the Renew MEPs. To fend that off however, as with the advances to dismantle Malta's competitive tax advantage and many other challenges, we need more cred- ibility, more cross-party collabo- ration and less theatrics. By ascertaining a well-in- tegrated European energy system, which takes into account all member states' needs, we would be guaran- teeing each and every citizen in our Union that they would be benefitting from ener- gy which is of the least-cost and highest-efficiency, whilst heading towards a truly equi- table green transition. At the end of the day, as EU citizens, us Maltese have a right to breath clean air, consume en- ergy which is affordable and puts nobody at risk of ener- gy poverty, whilst being en- sured of a secured supply of electricity all year round, as being connected to the Euro- pean energy grid would offset any seasonal deficiencies en- countered in the generation of energy from renewables.