Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/832638
maltatoday, MONDAY, 5 JUNE 2017 6 News Analysis The implications of a Labour landslide Did the economy trump corruption? The PL's landslide suggests that the corruption issue, illus- trated primarily by the Panama Papers, was not decisive in this election. The result reflected the 'feel good' factor in the country as a result of a buoy- ant economy, and it remains doubtful whether corruption even resonates with the elec- torate when the economy is thriving, especially when peo- ple do not feel that corruption is eroding their living stand- ards. The result also confirms the trend, which sees the elector- ate rewarding incumbent gov- ernments with even better re- sults, as was the case in 1976, 1992 and 2003. But the scale of Labour's victory makes it even harder for the PN this time around. Yet one other implication of the result could be that of ab- solving Konrad Mizzi's and Keith Schembri's decision to set up offshore companies in Panama a few days after the election. For the message sent is that this kind of impropriety has absolutely no impact on voters and this could be inter- preted as a sign that anything goes as long as the economy grows. Muscat may well interpret this result as one which washes the Panama stain away, and a license to retain Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri. But this path could be interrupted by pending magisterial inquiries which will not go away. Still another interpretation of the result is that the PN is not trusted to address this issue. For the PN it was always diffi- cult to project itself as a party of good governance after be- ing voted out of office in 2013 with a baggage accumulated throughout 25 years in power. The result suggests that any movement of switchers or La- bour voters who went back to the PN was compensated by an equal number of voters who switched from the PN to the PL in the past four years. This could be an indication that the PL has made inroads among a category of voters, which has prospered under Labour and has become immune to accu- sations of bad governance. A wipe-out for the opposition? One major implication of the result is that it might give the government the impression that it can ride rough shod on a weakened opposition. With the opposition relegated to the po- litical wilderness, the govern- ment could reap the benefits of a honeymoon period. The next months could see the govern- ment using this period to take controversial and unpopular decisions, while the PN licks its wounds. The opposition is at a cross- roads. Clearly the result sends the message that in its current form the PN is not electable. This is bound to raise ques- tions on Simon Busuttil's lead- ership qualities and ability to win elections. While Busuttil's stature grew among PN vot- ers during the campaign as he rallied the troops to battle, he is clearly not reaching out to strategic categories of voters and has not blocked the haem- orrhage of votes to Labour. But this raises a fundamental question as to how the PN can reach out to those categories of voters it needs to win over. Under Busuttil, the PN experi- mented with the coalition for- mula by striking a deal with Marlene Farrugia's Democratic Party. This formula was not successful in terms of electoral results. The choice facing the PN is whether to go further down this path and try to occupy the centre-left space of Maltese politics, or to return to return to its roots as a centre-right party with a strong appeal to the business class. With Muscat occupying this space on the political spec- trum, the PN's major problem could well have been that it lacked the authenticity to ap- peal to voters disgruntled by Muscat's business-friendly pol- icies and corruption scandals. The results of the Maltese election show Joseph Muscat consolidating his 2013 gains amidst a strong performance in the economy and a bad record on governance. What does this say about Muscat's intentions and the PN's future? JAMES DEBONO asks