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11 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 27 AUGUST 2017 News Alex Perici Calascione: Level-headed STRENGTH HIS candidature may have benefitted from revelations which tainted the other contenders. His major advantage is that he comes across as a decent and level- headed politician. As the party's outgoing treasurer he also has a degree of hands-on experience without being too hampered by his party's past baggage. This helps him in projecting himself as a reformer of party structures. He also comes across as mildly liberal on social issues. Surely he has managed to emerge as the candidate whose reputation has re- mained intact in an increasingly acrimo- nious contest. WEAKNESS Despite standing as an MEP candidate in 2009 when he only garnered 1,345 first count votes, which was fewer than Frank Portelli's 2,459 votes, Perice Ca- lascione is far from a household name. His candidature has so far not attracted the same amount of interest as that of newcomer Delia. But that could underestimate Perici Calascione's appeal among delegates who would be short-listing the two can- didates who will face the verdict of party members. If Perici Calascione makes it to the second round, he will secure enough attention to make him a force to be reckoned with in the party's future. FEAR FACTOR Perici Calascione's election as leader will definitely be a surprise for his adver- saries, who may be banking either on the continuity represented by Said or rap- ture represented by Delia. The soft-spoken Perici Calascione may well be in synch with those who see the PN as a voice of decency and modera- tion. Still Perici Calascione has so far played safe, showing little appetite for the role he is aspiring to. This may suggest that even if elected Perici Calascione will be simply taking up the role of interim leader, paving the way for a new leader who would take on the task after the next election. Chris Said – Experienced STRENGTH SAID has banked on political experience in both cabinet and opposition, and has em- phasised continuity with regard to Busuttil's crusade against corruption. Said also has the track record of a doer with organisational skills, something which was evident from the days he served as Nadur mayor while coming across as a good orator. His election would also cause the least problems for his party. As the only sitting MP among the four contenders, his elec- tion would not require anyone to give up his seat in parliament. With Said at the helm the party can stand assured that a level-headed politician who fully knows the rules of engagement is leading it. Said has also shown acumen by immediately show- ing his readiness to publish his financial in- terests, in a move which was clearly meant to embarrass Delia. Said also comes across as a politician sea- soned in the art of compromise. His call on the party to invest in sociological studies to understand change, may in itself signal a readiness to face the existential issues fac- ing the PN: that of keeping conservatives and liberals together. As an MP, despite hailing from conserva- tive Gozo, Said immediately declared his willingness to vote for divorce after the referendum. But throughout the campaign Said was keen to retain his appeal among conservatives; addressing security issues in localities such as Bugibba and pandering to conservatives' insistence on terms like mother and father alongside gender neutral terms in the new marriage bill. His stance against gentlemen clubs may defy his own party's tolerance for such establishments when he served as Minister but indicates a willingness to take a stance on a peculiar issue which may appeal to moral conserva- tives and feminists and social justice activ- ists alike. WEAKNESS As the only sitting MP and a past mem- ber of Gonzi's cabinet and party general secretary Said may well be perceived as the representative of the party establishment. Said's other weakness may be his bland- ness. While it is the role which makes the politician, as was the case with Fenech Ad- ami in the 1980s, it is not clear whether he has the oomph to inspire audiences. His main baggage is his family connec- tion and involvement in the construction industry. In the past Said had shown remarkable ability to distance himself from his own brothers, going as far as reporting them for planning irregularities while serving as Na- dur mayor. Said has also failed in his big test after leaving the post of party general secretary, that of winning back Gozo for the PN. In fact Gozo was the district where Labour made most gains. Said's election will also test his party's relationship with environmentalists, given his support for the Malta-Gozo tunnel and his ambiguity on the Gozo airstrip. FEAR FACTOR Said may be seen as too predictable and bland to pose a threat to Muscat or any fu- ture leader chosen in full knowledge of his weaknesses. On the other hand Said may compensate what he lacks in oomph with a sense of gravitas, a characteristic that may grow on him as he assumes the role of op- position leader. Said may also be in a better position to reposition the party on the centre-left of the spectrum on economic issues while still paying lip service to conservatives in a bal- ancing act in which Said seems to excel. As a Gozitan he may also be best placed to win back one of the most strategic district. Frank Portelli: The insurgent STRENGTH HE has projected himself as the insurgent candidate – a reverse hard-right version of Jeremy Corbyn, even earning a rebuke from his party for his xenophobic and homopho- bic comments. Portelli may strike a chord for his past militancy, being the only contender to have been active in the party in the 1980s. Moreover since his election to the helm of the party is highly improbable, Portelli can afford to take commitments which he will probably will be never asked to honour. For example in last Thursday's debate Portelli was the only one to describe the 2019 local councils and MEP elections as the litmus test of the new PN leader, pledging to resign if the party fails to gain back a minimum of 20,000 votes. Of all candidates he was the most ideologi- cal – seeking to reinvent the party's identity as a conservative and patriotic one. But the patriotism he proposes tends to be of the exclusionary sort, something which has pushed the contest outside the boundaries of the European mainstream. Moreover Portelli may well claim that the party had no prob- lem in accepting him as an MEP candidate in 2009 despite expressing similar views as to- day with regard to migration. WEAKNESS Portelli did cross the lines of a party which since the 1970s has shifted to more centrist ground and which has consistently rejected xenophobia. His unlikely election to the post would fur- ther alienate liberals from the PN, possibly rendering the party toxic and unelectable for the foreseeable future. The fact that Frank Portelli owes money to a major bank and is plagued by financial problems resulting from the closing down of the St Philip's hospital, weakens his leader- ship credentials. Still, Portelli's main aim may well be that of giving a new lease of life to conservatism in his party rather than winning the contest. He may have already succeeded in shifting the debate. FEAR FACTOR Probably Labour would celebrate any in- roads made by Portelli in his party as signs of the PN's anachronistic appeal. His improbable election would see La- bour being directly challenged from the right on issues like migration, for the first time since Muscat was elected to power. For while Muscat himself had used the migration card against the Gonzi admin- istration, in government he found a de- cent Busuttil who refrained from making any capital on this issue. The election of a hawkish PN leader may create some tension among the La- bour grass roots, which have so far been reined in by a balancing act between hawkish posturing and the opening up of the economy to an influx of foreign work- ers. If Portelli does get a sizeable protest vote, the temptation for a future PN lead- er to use the migration trump card may grow. Ready for (verbal) battle: the four leadership candidates, Adrian Delia, Alex Perici Calascione, Frank Portelli, and Chris Said at the first of the PN leadership debates. The next debate will be held this week on Thursday, 31 August, at 9pm and will be broadcast live on Net TV. PHOTO by James Bianchi