Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1521974
Grexit: Politics can be absurd, and Ivan Grech Mintoff's sudden resig- nation on air is politics at its most absurd. During a debate on the pub- lic broadcaster Tuesday night, Ivan Grech Mintoff announced that he will be offering his resignation as leader of Partit Abba, and will resign from the party's executive. Imagine resigning as leader from your party days before people vote in an election you're con- testing in. In fact, on the ballot sheet he is still going to appear as a candi- date for Partit Abba, but is asking peo- ple to consider him as an independent candidate. This all stems from some drama with the party's secretary gen- eral, which you can read more about here. Disinformation-watch: Norman Lowell messed with the wrong for- mer TV presenter. A political spot has been going around on the public broadcaster seemingly showing Pep- pi Azzopardi saying "Norman Lowell was right". Except he didn't quite say that. In a short video clarifying the whole situation, Peppi Azzopardi said the advert completely manipulated his comments. He had been speak- ing on Jon Mallia's podcast when he said: "Someone can say Norman Low- ell was right, but those who say that don't know what they are saying". Bit of a far cry from saying Norman Lowell is right. Peppi Azzopardi said he can never agree with someone like Lowell, who praises Hitler and promotes eugenics. Azzopardi also questioned where the Broadcasting Authority is in all this, and how this was even allowed to air on national television. But the authority told Mal- taToday that the advert does not, in fact, breach the law. Endorsement confusion: Earlier in the day, Peter Agius posted what looked like an endorsement from Is- abelle Bonnici, the mother of Jean Paul Sofia. The Facebook post sees her praising Agius for helping her case from a European perspective, and then saying that politics in Malta needs more people like Peter Agius. This is quite an endorsement! Espe- cially from Isabelle, whose relentless campaigning last year saw the gov- ernment launch a public inquiry into her son's death. However, she later went on Facebook to clarify that this is not an exclusive endorsement. "I support everyone who helped me and still helps me regardless of whether they're a political party or independ- ent candidate," she said. Campaign rizz-o-meter: Thir- ty-something days later, and every- one's campaigns are coming to a close. So, I'm taking it on myself to vibe-check the different campaigns and rate them according to five char- acteristics: general vibes, political messaging, policies, and strength of candidates. However, in an attempt to attract the youths to politics, I'm going to rate the campaigns in terms of 'rizz' (for the boomers, that's in- ternet slang for charisma). The PN's campaign? Negative rizz I'm afraid. It was a bit too negative and the mes- saging was all over the place. Having their lead candidate completely out of debates and advertising doesn't help either. ADPD? Zero rizz. It's to be expected with the lack of resources, and that's why they're not in the neg- ative like the PN. It's also super awk- ward since they're being completely crushed by their former chairman Arnold Cassola, again. Labour's cam- paign? Kinda mid. The adverts were top production quality but the Estab- lishment discourse quickly became a meme. They also didn't have many star candidates compared to the years of Miriam Dalli and Alfred Sant. What's happening?: The two main parties have their star events in Ta' Qali (Labour) and Siġġiewi (PN). 8 maltatoday | THURSDAY • 6 JUNE 2024 MEP ELECTION 2024 MATTHEW FARRUGIA mfarrugia@mediatoday.com.mt NICOLE MEILAK nmeilak@mediatoday.com.mt NICOLE MEILAK nmeilak@mediatoday.com.mt These articles are part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. This article reflects only the author's view. The action was co-financed by the European Union in the frame of the European Parliament's grant programme in the field of communication. The European Parliament was not involved in its preparation and is, in no case, responsible for or bound by the information or opinions expressed in the context of this action. In accordance with applicable law, the authors, interviewed people, publishers or programme broadcasters are solely responsible. The European Parliament can also not be held liable for direct or indirect damage that may result from the implementation of the action. Ivan Grech Mintoff resigns on air and Norman Lowell spreads disinformation – here's your day 36 round-up Grech Mintoff makes an eggs-it Party leaders ROBERT Abela and Bernard Grech went head-to-head on Wednesday evening in a final televised debate ahead of voting day to talk about the environment, good govern- ance, and Malta's place in the EU. The Prime Minister and Opposition lead- er took turns to state their positions on nu- merous issues. Both leaders started by offering their con- dolences to Joseph Muscat over the death of his father, but were then asked about their party slogans – Għalik for the PN, and Is-Saħħa lill-Maltin for the PL. Grech said the PN focussed on the idea of a party working for "you", the audience and electorate. He referred to a manifesto published by his party for its local council campaign with general principles and ded- icated measures for each locality. "We worked to get the hospitals back, for you. Adrian Delia and I went to court to get the €400 million back from the hospitals deal, for you," Grech said. He also mentioned the Nationalist Par- ty's work in applying pressure for a public