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7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 JULY 2025 ANALYSIS & OPINION Delia's second act: Reinvention or déjà vu? IT'S 2025, and watching Adrian Delia step forward once again in a Nationalist Party leadership con- test feels almost surreal. Some might call it perseverance, others would call it delusional. Back in 2020, Delia lost the sup- port of his parliamentary group, the party executive, and ultimate- ly a leadership election to Bernard Grech. He was unceremoniously ousted from the PN's top post. So, seeing him once again in the hot seat for a leadership race inter- view with MaltaToday, inevitably brings back memories of those hot, sticky summer evenings spent outside Dar Ċentrali, waiting end- lessly for a half-comment from MPs. But the key question is: Has Adrian Delia truly grown as a po- litical figure, or is it simply that Bernard Grech's failures now cast him in a more favourable light? Pressed on how he intends to lead MPs, who once played a pivotal role in his downfall, Delia insists the hatchet has long been buried. In fact, he claims some were among the first to back his return. That makes for a tidy nar- rative during a leadership cam- paign, but one must ask whether Delia can genuinely unify the par- liamentary group when faced with the relentless machine of the La- bour Party? Labour already has a well-worn playbook for taking on Delia—one that's proved effective in the past. That's where Alex Borg arguably holds an advantage. The Gozitan MP is younger, untested by La- bour, and free from baggage. Yet, in his attempts to showcase renewed unity, Delia risks alienat- ing one of his staunchest allies— Alex Borg himself. As he did in other interviews, Delia told me without hesitation that an agree- ment between the two had been broken. Nonetheless, I found Delia to be unrestrained in his praise for Borg and his potential, particularly as a Gozitan leader. But should De- lia reclaim the party helm, he will need to tread carefully in deciding how to deploy one of the PN's few bright stars in what is fast becom- ing an ever-dimming Nationalist sky. His predecessor, it's worth re- calling, stumbled when faced with a similar dilemma in Roberta Met- sola. Under mounting pressure, he eventually faced a barrage of questions over whether she would take his place. On Metsola, Delia insists he does not see himself as a mere placeholder. "It's not in my char- acter," he told me when I pressed on the matter. He added it would be wrong for anyone to enter the leadership race with such a mind- set. But Delia's biggest challenge in the short term lies in the PN's sense of purpose. For a leadership candidate to say that the party's vision will be shaped after a "convention" is puzzling to me, especially given that we're talking about a party with nearly a century of history and less than two years away from a general election. One would expect a prospective leader to come in with bold ideas, setting the agenda from the out- set, rather than deferring direc- tion to a drawn-out gathering of what could be the usual suspects. It's all well and good to talk about a "mosaic of people and ideolo- gies", but when it comes to taking clear, principled stances on ethical and controversial issues, the PN has often been inconsistent, and it has paid the price for it. This am- biguity contrasts with Delia's clear and determined response when I asked him where he stood on eu- thanasia if government's propos- al is tabled as a bill—he will vote against. Delia's clarity will have to be reconciled with the PN's ambi- guity, which more often than not has played directly into Labour's hands. In the end, I feel Adrian Delia 2.0 is a more polished and com- posed version of his former self. But whether the skeletons in his closet have truly turned to dust, or whether his real problems are on- ly just beginning, is a question that only his party, his MPs, and ulti- mately the electorate can answer. I interviewed Adrian Delia as he vies for the Nationalist Party leadership. This is what I learnt about him. KARL AZZOPARDI kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt Delia's clarity will have to be reconciled with the PN's ambiguity, which more often than not has played directly into Labour's hands. Alex Borg Ethical foundations: Environment, social justice, good governance PN leadership candidate MALTA'S foundations must be built on what is right and just. Malta's next chapter must not be driven by what is prof- itable today but by what is sus- tainable, fair, and honest for the future. This is why we see the environment, social pro- gress, and governance as the ethical foundations of Malta's renewal. These are choices about the kind of country we want to be- come. Malta is a beautiful island, but we have not always treated it with care. Overdevelopment has robbed us of open spaces. Our renewable energy efforts have not kept pace with our ambitions. We cannot keep balancing development against the en- vironment as if they are two sides of a negotiation. The environment is not a cost; it is our shared inheritance. Malta must make wind and solar the backbone of our en- ergy future. We must move beyond timid targets and embrace bold ones. We will protect our natural habitats, green our towns and villages, and create new open spaces for communities to breathe, connect, and thrive. Environ- mental protection is not about saying 'no' to progress. It is about saying 'yes' to a better quality of life. The second part of our eth- ical foundation is social pro- gress. Too many people are still left behind. Young couples can't afford a home. The el- derly struggle with loneliness. Mental health remains a silent crisis. A fair society is one where opportunity is open to all. This means investing in af- fordable housing, preventive healthcare, and education that equips our children with life skills. It means creating policies that work for mod- ern family realities; not for a Malta of the past. Social policy should not be about handouts or pity. It should be about giv- ing people the tools and op- portunities to live independ- ent, meaningful lives. And the third foundation is governance. Malta cannot thrive if trust in our institu- tions remains weak. We must see governance as leadership. That's why I believe in a lean- er, more focused parliament with fewer MPs but full-time roles. We cannot keep expect- ing our MPs to serve the coun- try part-time while holding private interests. We will also revise the pay packets of MPs, ministers, and the prime minister to reflect both the responsibility and the accountability of public office. Fair pay, transparent struc- tures, and clear expectations will attract the right talent into politics for the right reasons. But governance is also about how our regulators work, how our courts deliver jus- tice, and how public service treats citizens. We will drive open government initiatives so that citizens can track pub- lic spending, decision-making, and service delivery. These are the ethical foun- dations the Nationalist Party believes in: A Malta where the environment is protected, not exploited; a Malta where no one is left behind; a Malta where institutions lead with integrity, not convenience. These are not distant ideals. They are decisions we must make today if we want a better tomorrow. The PN is ready to lead this change. Not because it is po- litically easy, but because it is morally right. We will work to build a Mal- ta that our children will thank us for, not forgive us for. This is what ethical lead- ership looks like. And this is what we are determined to deliver. Adrian Delia (Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday)