Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1464183
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 APRIL 2022 OPINION 5 FEW had expected Robert Abela to win that January 2020 lead- ership contest. The MaltaTo- day survey had realised Abela had pipped Chris Fearne to the top towards the end of the cam- paign. But to many political ob- servers, it seemed Abela was an unknown quantity, despite his role as Cabinet assistant to Jo- seph Muscat. It turned out that initial impres- sions that Abela was nothing but an extension of his father George, the man who lost out to the 2009 leadership election against Mus- cat, were wrong. Even though possessing the shrewdness of his father, Abela has proved he is his own man. Abela was meant to go headlong into a whirlwind of public protest in the wake of the unbelievable scandals and forced resignation of Joseph Muscat after the revela- tions implicating his chief of staff Keith Schembri. Protest having been the order of the day in the weeks running up to the resigna- tion of Muscat, there was clearly going to no end to that front. But COVID-19 presented Abela with a first test, perhaps fortui- tously dampening the resolve for protest and giving the new PM a break from the civil soceity on- slaught as the rest of the country came to grips with the real threat of COVID. Abela now had to turn to deal with sustaining the economy, as the momentum of justified anger against the Labour administra- tion subsided in the wake of new realities. Still, Abela found time to address Labour's problems of Konrad Mizzi, whom he sacked, and Chris Cardona, who resigned his seat – both were intrinsically linked to the Muscat adminis- tration and both were forced out with pressure from third parties. Many other MPs not suited to the Abela administration were shown the door to make room for the new PM's team in a bid to cut the umbilical cord with the Mus- cat administration. COVID allowed Abela to make the necessary reforms to imple- ment governance issues, and bring in grey matter to the Cabi- net with chief of staff Clyde Caru- ana taking up the post of finance minister; and MEP Miriam Dalli becoming energy minister. Labour's playbook throughout COVID was squarely opposed to any notion of austerity, with a massive outlay that served to safe- guard jobs and keep consumption buoyant. The Opposition in the meantime failed to make any sort of political recovery, even when Abela faced any incidents of im- propriety inside the government team, retorting to such instanc- es with his quip that everyone would have to shoulder respon- sibility for their actions: former police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar, parliamentary secretary Rosianne Cutajar, and education minister Justyne Caruana found a cool reception to their troubles. Abela knew well that winning the next election meant effecting ab- solute change. With his chances of winning the next election with a majority close to that of 2017, his advisors were content with a reduced ma- jority of 25,000 for Labour's third consecutive landslide. But Abela in 2022 was truly aiming to beat Muscat's record landslide. In a campaign which never ev- er referred to Joseph Muscat and only extolled the virtues of Abela alone, the underlying message was that this was to be an Abela admin- istration free of the Muscat tenta- cles. When on election day, the first numbers for the 2pm turnout indicated an incredibly low per- centage, Labour's well-greased machine pressed the panic button and thousands of phone calls went out exhorting Labour voters to get out and vote. It worked. At least 10,000 more votes were brought out to prevent that majority from falling to 29,000 with total votes for both parties falling right below 2013 levels. The end result was that Abela won with an astounding 39,000 majority as both Labour and the Nationalists saw their vote counts drop drastically – the PN's down to a pathetic 123,000. That victory offered Abela his golden opportunity to make the changes he needed to make. He demoted anyone with baggage or poor ministerial performance by not renewing their Cabinet post: they included Edward Zammit Lewis, Deo Debattista, Michael Farrugia, Alex Muscat, Carmelo Abela and Chris Agius. The electorate had already solved his problem with other former heavyweights who he had had problems with: Evarist Bar- tolo was too single-minded for Abela's foreign policy outlook; Joe Mizzi and Anthony Agius Decelis simply did not make the grade; and Josè Herrera, who never seemed to be in Abela's good books, was also out thanks to the Labour vote. Armed with new faces in his team, Abela could have the op- portunity to govern in his own style with some vigour and de- termination. He has signalled that he can be ruthless and reso- lute about where he wants to go. And he seems to have everything on his side: a weak opposition, a super-majority, a track record, visible deliverables, a style which leaves the press and adversaries wondering what he is going to do next, and the element of surprise – an asset in politics which is, somewhat uncomfortably, a plus. With some foresight, he should use the first six months ahead of him to enforce the big changes that have eluded all premiers in this country, but without being distant from the press. A new Constitution for the Re- public, reform of work practices in the public sector, raising sala- ries and allowances for MPs, the electoral reform that would make Malta's parliament more rep- resentative, the need to reform public broadcasting once and for all and do away with political stations, setting new standards in environmental protection and in- culcating a culture of paying tax- es to give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and last and not least building a new image for Malta beyond our shores. If Abela misses this chance, he would have started on the wrong foot. Few premiers have had such a brilliant occasion. Now is the time to seize the moment. Abela should set the tone with his new administration Saviour Balzan COVID-19 presented Abela with a first test, perhaps fortuitously dampening the resolve for protest and giving the new PM a break from the civil soceity onslaught as the rest of the country came to grips with the real threat of COVID