Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/483475
14 IT'S hard to resist quoting the Mup- pet Show at the best of times; but when the subject of your interview is a representative of the Green Party (AD) – which has (let's face it) strug- gled over the years to assert its rele- vance in the local political landscape – the immortal words of Kermit the Frog inevitably spring to mind. "It isn't easy being Green." This has certainly been true for AD's electoral performances over the years – at least during general elec- tions – and March 2013 was no ex- ception. At the same time, however, there is a perspective from which the Green Party suddenly appears more relevant than ever. Malta is on the brink of taking a final decision on the contentious spring hunting issue – which AD has championed for 25 years – and on top of that important milestone for the party, the environment in gen- eral seems to be back on the menu as an item of major concern. Polls indicate a resurgence of en- vironmental angst of late: and the verdict of independent observers (including former AD chairman Michael Briguglio) on the first two years of a Labour government sug- gests that its most conspicuous 'fail- ures', so to speak, have concerned environmental issues. In a sense, this provides am- ple opportunities for Alternattiva Demokratika to once again flourish its green credentials. Ralph Cassar is both the party's secretary general and one of its most prominent faces in the public arena. Does he share the opinion of those observers that the environment has been pushed up the ladder of popu- lar concern? And more to the point… does he expect this concern to be re- flected in a corresponding surge in support for the Green Party? "I am still a little sceptical regard- ing how much people will rally be- hind an environmental cause," he begins. "If you look at what hap- pened in 2006, with the extension of the development zones, and the changing of the zoning schemes to allow three-storey penthouses, and so on… OK, it's true there was a bit of concern among residents at the time; there was a protest, a court case… We asked the EU to look into a strategic impact assessment, but the government got out of it thanks to some deadline on the application of the directive... in any case, the bot- tom line was the decision was taken regardless, and much of what is hap- pening today is a direct result of that decision." This includes many of the con- troversial developments that have fuelled much of the current criti- cism. "Let me give an example from my own neighbourhood, Attard. People ask me if we're going to 'do anything' about the development near the Tal- Mirakli chapel. Well, we had tried to do something about it back in 2006, when the decision to include that area in the development zone was originally taken. Now it's too late. It's within the development zone. But because of the time-lag between the actual decision and the implementa- tion of the policy, some people may find it difficult to make the connec- tion…" Another case involves a proposed development on the outskirts of Misrah Kola, which residents fear will impact the skyline and character of the village. "In July, some residents organised a press conference to protest about the development in the area, and invited representatives of all three parties. The irony is that [Nationalist MP] David Agius showed up for the PN, and spoke out against the develop- ment. Yet he himself had voted in favour of the ODZ extension which made this development possible in the first place… like all other MPs, including Labour. And as far as I know, some of the people present for the protest would probably have voted David Agius into parliament. It's his district. People don't seem to make a connection between their own vote, and the things which hap- pen afterwards." His reply seems to indicate a cer- tain resignation: not just that the problems facing the environment may be insoluble, but also that such concerns do not actually impact peo- ple's voting patterns. Am I correct in discerning a note of pessimism here? "Not exactly. What I mean is that people often pay lip service to the en- vironment, but when push comes to shove, it's the economy that counts. And whether the price of petrol is one or two cents cheaper or more expensive…" What does this tell us about the future of AD? If, as Cassar seems to be suggesting, the environment is eternally condemned to play second fiddle to other issues, then surely the implications are not rosy for an envi- ronmentalist party... He shrugs. "We have to keep try- ing to prove ourselves, and carry on speaking out about these issues. We also have to tie economic issues to environmental concerns. Which I think we do, but perhaps not effec- tively enough. We have to get the message across more plainly, per- haps in more simple terms…" Cassar is AD's spokesperson for energy, industry and transport, so unsurprisingly he cites examples from his own portfolio. "Take en- ergy, for instance. When we speak about the need to go for alternative sources of energy – at least, for a sig- nificant chunk of our energy needs – we are actually talking about an eco- nomic issue. It doesn't make sense to depend completely, as we do, on foreign oil. What we are effectively doing with our current energy policy is exporting money…" On the subject of oil procurement, it seems we have exported a lot of money over the years. It transpired that Malta paid 3.2 billion euros for fuel over 13 years… at a time when we now know that commissions were being paid by energy companies in return for contracts. Meanwhile, the experience of other countries – in- cluding small island states compara- ble to Malta, such as the Bahamas – suggests that millions might be saved by investing in renewables. Yet time and again, Malta has disregarded this option in favour of feeding an oil ad- diction. How does Ralph Cassar account for this? If the economy always trumps the environment… shouldn't eco- nomic arguments also prevail in such decisions? "My suspicion, reading all these stories about BWSC, the commis- sions paid for oil contracts, etc. – is that there is a link between political party financing and fuel procure- ment. Possibly even with individual candidate financing. Some people might say: 'If you have any informa- tion, go to the police.' I've been told that before. But it's the police's job to investigate these matters, not mine. Or the job of magistrates, who have the power to investigate on their own initiative. But they never use it of their own accord, it seems…" Cassar acknowledges that the rea- son for this may be nothing more complicated than a lack of resources. "Do the police have enough resourc- es to investigate corruption? If not, I would expect the Commissioner to speak up about it. That's what hap- pens in other countries. Here, how- ever, I sometimes get the impression that there is a civil service mentality that pervades these institutions. But the police should be independent…" As with the environment, Cassar is inclined to believe that popular concern with corruption may be skin deep. He reminds me that apart from the oil scandal, at least three former Cabinet ministers have separately been named as holders of undeclared Swiss bank accounts. "Yet there was no real public out- cry," Cassar points out. "It was just glossed over. Just imagine it had been someone else…" Here he alludes to a long-standing sore point with AD: the arrest of former AD chairman Harry Vassallo on the eve of the 2008 election. "Had it been an AD chairperson who failed to fill in a zero VAT return, he would have been arrested and accused of evading tax. Yet when former Cabi- net ministers were revealed to have evaded tax, nothing happened." Again, this sounds like a somewhat fatalistic stance. Cassar however con- cedes that while the pace of change in some areas has been slow, there have been other areas where signifi- cant progress has been achieved. "Some changes have happened: the divorce referendum, the civil unions laws…. and there is a growing core of people demanding change, too. But it hasn't reached critical mass yet. Even you look at other parties, I am sure there are people who want to change things in other parties as well, but they're… how can I put it?... being held back…" One other change seems to have taken place just in the last few days, and may be of particular relevance to AD. Nationalist leader Simon Busuttil declared on TV that, unlike his predecessor Lawrence Gonzi, he would be open to a coalition with AD. Yet the reaction by the Green Party chairman Arnold Cassola didn't sound very enthusiastic. He described it as 'pie in the sky'. I put it to Cassar that this reac- tion may sound odd, coming from a party that has long argued in favour of coalition governments. How does he explain this apparent rejection of what appears to be an olive branch extended by the Opposition leader? "I think what the big parties really want is cannibalisation, not coali- tion. That's what they understand by the word 'coalition': to absorb smaller parties. If what Simon Busut- til really wants is more pluralism, a more democratic representation, he should press to change the electoral system to make it representative on a national basis…" Instead, Cassar argues that the PN leader is doing the opposite. "Look at what's happening now: after winning a court case to be given extra seats because of a mistake by the Electoral Commission, the PM now wants an additional two seats – over and above the Constitutional mechanism – be- cause of 30 votes. They want to have Interview By Raphael Vassallo maltatoday, SUNDAY, 22 MARCH 2015 It (still) isn't easy being Had it been an AD chairperson who failed to fill in a zero VAT return, he would have been arrested and accused of evading tax. Yet when former Cabinet ministers were revealed to have evaded tax, nothing happened LIP SERVICE People often pay lip service to the environment, but when push comes to shove, it's the economy that counts. And whether the price of petrol is one or two cents cheaper or more expensive SWISS LEAKS