Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1507380
IN the art of war, or shall we say politics, timing is of the es- sence. So, when Nationalist leader Bernard Grech lashed out at the 'mafia clique' in Labour over the severe disability ben- efit scam, he was doing what every politician in opposition is expected to do; seize the mo- ment and go for it. I am in no way trying to dis- miss the social benefit scam and the involvement of poli- ticians. We have to have zero tolerance when it comes to these episodes. My point is that the Maltese passion in shafting the gov- ernment or rather the State has nothing to do with being Labour but rather with being Maltese and Catholic. Let us all agree that most of us could not give a hoot if the State or its coffers get a beating. Or if the State is de- frauded. And I guess it has got worse with all the allegations of corruption over the years. With Joe Citizen basically ar- guing that if the politicians have no qualms pilfering from the State why should I. And this does not only apply to the government employee but many of those who work in the private sector or who see nothing wrong if they avoid work and report sick when they are in fact perfectly fine to work; or take a kickback when their company subcontracts or wins a tender. Surely, on the issue of dishing out false medical certificates Grech should look behind his back and start with scrutinis- ing some of his parliamentary colleagues who have been ac- cused by the media of fraudu- lent behaviour. Indeed, his former political strategist Chris Peregin, who now serves as a big business dream changer once upon a time in the not too distant future owned and edited an online platform that hound- ed and called for the head of a Nationalist MP alleged to have issued medical certificates for fake medical conditions. That Nationalist MP is still a spokesman for the PN. It seems we all suffer from amnesia. If there was one person who had the gall to call a spade a spade it was Gozo Bishop Mgr Anton Teuma who lamented in his Sunday homily over the fact that many Gozitans em- ployed with government had made skiving their hobby. He was direct in his words but he was also bemoaning a culture that is deeply rooted in many Maltese and Gozitan commu- nities. Everyone knows of the typ- ical government worker who reports for work and then goes off hunting in April and May. Indeed, Gozo's endemic ma- laise related to public sector employment and people plead- ing with Gozitan politicians to find them a job with the gov- ernment goes way back in time, spanning different administra- tions over five decades. It would be rather futile to mention all the politicians who were or are culprits here, because what matters is now not then. PN leader Bernard Grech is right in sounding the alarm on the corrupt business of de- frauding the State. Yet I am sure that the cultur- al attitude towards defrauding the State will be with us for a long time. In this small country with an electorate split down the middle and composed of con- trolled voter constituencies, it seems that everyone believes they are entitled to take from the State. Additionally, they expect the politicians to make this possible. It is here that the politician and the political party need to act and work against this ingrained trend. They cannot simply say they want a sense of high morality. They need to see the cause of the problem con- tributing to the decline in elec- toral support. They also need to change the electoral law to break the dependence on pa- rochial politics and candidates doing favours for votes. It is clear that none of our political leaders, past and present, have had or have the proverbial balls to change or reform this. If we want people to feel guilty if they steal from the State, we have to have a politi- cal class that is up there in the morality quotient. We are far from this. We have to have the conscience to say something is wrong when it is. Unfortunately, I am starting to believe that unless we get a politician who does not seek re-election and is more pre-oc- cupied with his or her legacy, this kind of radical reform will never, ever see the light of day. maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 SEPTEMBER 2023 OPINION 5 Saviour Balzan How to steal from the State If we want people to feel guilty if they steal from the State, we have to have a political class that is up there in the morality quotient. We are far from this. We have to have the conscience to say something is wrong when it is. Saviour Balzan is founder and co-owner of Media Today, publisher of MaltaToday, he is a TV host and pollster Gozo Bishop Mgr Anton Teuma