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MaltaToday 4 June 2017

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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 4 JUNE 2017 7 News stitutional amendment that would place both Labour leader Alfred Sant and AD chairman Harry Vas- sallo in the awkward predicament of appearing to oppose a pro-life initiative. The abortion card may or may not have contributed to AD's poor performance in that election, but it is difficult to determine its ac- tual electoral impact. However, a similar ruse in the 2009 European election likewise boomeranged: this time, Labour MEP John Attard Montalto was singled out for at- tacks on his voting record vis-a-vis abortion. Nonetheless he would be emphatically returned to the EP in that election... and with Borg him- self forced to change tack on abor- tion when interviewed by MEPs for the role of Commissioner, the entire issue appears to have finally fizzled out. 4. Repeater classes and DNA disasters Elsewhere, the ability to turn around electoral fortunes – pos- sibly even to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat – is by no means limited only to subterfuge of the 'Terinu' variety. Often the same effect can be obtained simply by capitalising on the opportunities provided by one's political oppo- nents; and again, a cursory glance at recent examples suggests that the PN is miles ahead of Labour at this particular game. In 2008, PL shadow education minister Carmelo Abela proposed a 'reception class' as a main pillar of Labour's education policy. The idea was warmly received by edu- cation specialists (who actually understood what he meant); but it was Louis Galea's quick-witted re- sponse that effectively sealed the fate of this particular proposal... and quite possibly of the entire election. Dismissing the proposal with the memorable phrase 'repeater class', Galea scored a major double vic- tory for the PN. On one hand, his deft quip appealed to a deep- seated psychological aversion to failure among Maltese parents. On the other, it forced the Labour Party to change its script at the last-minute: investing precious electoral energy in 'explaining' its proposal over and over again, in what became a constant headache for Labour. In the end, however, it proved a Pyrrhic victory for Galea. Having arguably secured the election re- sult for his party, the former edu- cation minister failed to get elect- ed on the fifth district... losing his seat to newcomer Franco Debono. (The rest, as they say, is history.) The same election also illustrat- ed how political parties have an uncanny tendency to shoot them- selves in the foot. Addressing a party event, Labour deputy leader Charles Mangion gave his opponents a gift-wrapped weapon to use against Labour in the campaign: arguing repeatedly that 'there must be something wrong with the Nationalist Party DNA'. The PN machine capitalised on this totally gratuitous slip-up with rocket-propelled accuracy: trans- forming it into a full-frontal attack on PN supporters, and mobilising its full machinery - including plac- ards, radio programmes, printed T-shirts, the works – to squeeze it for every last drop of political mileage possible. Again, it is impossible to deter- mine exactly how much this gaffe contributed to the PL's defeat in that election; but it certainly taught all politicians the value to that archaic expression: 'look be- fore you leap'. 5. Mistra: the final frontier Lastly, electoral fortunes often boil down to a question of simple timing. As illustrated by the Ter- inu incident itself, it is not enough to have damning information (real or invented) on a political rival. Timing is also crucial - as Alfred Sant so spectacularly illustrated by failing to properly capitalise on what could easily have proved the game-changer of 2008. The case concerned Jeffrey Pul- licino Orlando – back then still in the PN's good books – and in particular, a contract for the con- struction of a nightclub on land he owned in environmentally sensi- tive Mistra. The timely revelation of this contract would no doubt have caused serious damage to a PN which had already been associated with numerous acts of environ- mental vandalism over the years. But Sant arguably mishandled the case - passing up an opportunity to face down Pullicino Orlando himself at a BA debate; and much more seriously, by producing the damning contract at the latest possible moment... during the fi- nal BA debate, when electoral law prevented all media from actually reporting the case. Voters therefore went to the polls largely unaware that previous alle- gations had since been established as facts; with the result that an oth- erwise explosive revelation came across as a damp squib at best. Labour lost that election, and was left to ponder the lessons learnt about political timing. The PN would later rue lessons of its own from that incident... but in the short-term it once again proved the more capable player, in that all-important game of winning elections. Tonio Borg Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, accused of dishing out 8,000 jobs on the eve of the 1987 election Gerald Strickland Louis Galea

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