Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1524836
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 4 AUGUST 2024 ANALYSIS delegates kept leaders in check the way for Mizzi to become deputy leader by changing the party's statute which previous- ly banned MPs from the role of deputy leader for party affairs. The change was approved by 393 delegates against one in February 2016, just a day be- fore nominations were opened for the choice of new deputy leader. Mizzi was axed from the role a few weeks later, after Muscat made the fateful decision to keep the errant minister in his Cabinet as the person respon- sible for public-private part- nerships, while removing him as deputy leader. Mizzi was later replaced by minister Chris Cardona, in a contest against Owen Bonnici, both being loyal ministers who posed no problems for Mus- cat. The situation was different in 2017, when delegates had to choose between finance min- ister Edward Scicluna, equal- ity minister Helena Dalli, and health minister Chris Fearne in a contest for the post of deputy prime minister. At the time, it was widely ru- moured that Muscat preferred Scicluna and Dalli over Fearne, always a potential leadership contender, but following Dal- li's elimination, Fearne nar- rowly defeated Scicluna with 51% of the delegates' vote. Fearne remained in the post even after his failed leadership bid following Muscat's contro- versial exit in 2020. Robert Abela's willingness to accept a deputy leader with a very different mindset proved to be a winning card for the party, with Fearne earning widespread respect during the COVID-19 pandemic and counterbalancing Abela's more populist approach to politics, with a sense of states- manship. The tradition of electing dep- uty leaders who counterbal- ance the power of the leader predates the eras of Muscat and Abela. For example, despite being considered a friend and ally of Alfred Sant, Evarist Bartolo was defeated in a contest that saw Michael Falzon elected deputy leader for party affairs in 2003. Concurrently, Labour also resoundingly elected Charles Mangion in a four-way race that included Leo Brincat, Joe Brincat, and Jose Herrera, for the post of deputy leader for parliamentary affairs. No stepping stone to leader- ship Another lesson from history is that it is very difficult for a Labour leader to use the post of deputy leader as a stepping stone to the leadership. In fact, Alfred Sant, Joseph Muscat, and Robert Abela, all made it to the top without having served as deputy lead- ers. In contrast, former deputy leaders like Joe Brincat, Mi- chael Falzon, and Chris Fearne all failed in their bids to be- come party leaders. The exceptions to this rule are Dom Mintoff, who was elected Deputy Leader in 1944, and Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, who was hand-picked by Mintoff in 1980 before be- ing confirmed as his deputy by the party conference. A year later, Mintoff desig- nated Mifsud Bonnici as his successor, with the decision again being rubber-stamped by the party conference. Mintoff's choice of Mifsud Bonnici was believed to have been dictated by his fear of a leadership vacuum that could be filled by a strongman like Lorry Sant. This is also a plausible reason why Labour opted for having two deputy leaders, a move undertaken in 1976, inter- preted as a means by Mintoff to dilute the strength of pow- er-mongers within the party. It was under Robert Abela that a clearer distinction be- tween the two roles was made, through a change in the statute approved in June 2020 to once again ban MPs from contest- ing the post of deputy leader for party affairs, reversing the change made by Joseph Mus- cat in 2016 to pave the way for Konrad Mizzi's election. Ironically this change enact- ed by Abela could pave the way for Jason Micallef, a popular and outspoken former general secretary, to contest the role without facing the competi- tion of a sitting MP. Micallef's return to a leader- ship post still raises the ques- tion as to whether Abela will feel the heat of an 'insurgency' that carries with it the mark of Labour loyalists close to dis- graced prime minister Joseph Muscat, now facing charges of corruption over the fraudulent Vitals PPP. Delegates will be the ones to choose, but will the party machinery swing towards its leader, or the force of a coun- terbalancing wave? Joseph Brincat 1976-1980 Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici 1980-1983 Guze Cassar 1983-1987 Joe Debono Grech 1987-1992 George Abela 1992-1998 Joseph Brincat 1998-2003 Michael Falzon 2003-2008 Toni Abela 2008-2016 Konrad Mizzi 2016 Chris Cardona 2016-2020 Daniel Jose Micallef 2020-2024 P. Bugelli 1920-1925 Michael Dundon 1925-1929 Paul Boffa 1929-1947 Dom Mintoff 1947-1949 Joseph Flores 1949-1955 Ġużè Ellul Mercer 1955-1961 Anton Buttigieg 1961-1976 Agatha Barbara 1976-1981 Wistin Abela 1981-1982 Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici 1982-1984 Ġuże Cassar 1984-1987 Joseph Brincat 1987-1992 George Vella 1992-2003 Charles Mangion 2003-2008 Angelo Farrugia 2008-2012 Louis Grech 2012-2017 Chris Fearne 2017-2024 PL deputy leaders party affairs since 1976 PL deputy leaders in parliament Michael Falzon