editorial

Beyond the Christmas spirit

Christmas the world over comes and goes. It is an event that marks the birth of Jesus Christ and it is an opportunity for people everywhere to reciprocate good will and peace. It is a welcome reprieve to an otherwise fast and cruel world.

This year has been a difficult one for many and next year does not appear to have much that is better in store for us. This is the stark reality and we better start getting used to it.

And with all this uncertainty about Europe, it will be far more difficult to raise a feel-good factor in Maltese society. But this is a storm, and all storms come to an end.

It is also possible that the Maltese public will read that many of our ills are not of our own making and they may well not be too impressed with the constant bickering and screaming from the Opposition benches.

Perhaps we are not aware of how serious the world situation is. Listening to foreign radio stations transmitting news services one is reminded of the unemployed and redundant who face despair.

Greed, bad management and a world crisis have left many businesses the world over in a state of shock. But there are other businesses that have fallen foul to stricter regulations, procedures on payments, new banking ethics and less tolerance on credit terms.

Unlike Malta many democratic countries have strict rules and regulations that control the way companies operate and close down.

If companies make losses they are expected to recoup them, but only if this is accompanied by a business plan. They cannot enter a second year and recoup their losses without a clear strategy. That is why we read and see so many examples of redundancies in Europe and the States. The other day Motorola said it needed to restructure, so out with 6,000.

Sooner or later, the malaise that comes with corporatism will hit Malta. Those that argue against corporatism have many good reasons to scorn this new type of business for it places primary concern on the shareholder. But they are short sighted, as all good lefties are.

However noble and ideal the opposition to shareholder corporatism is, the fact remains that there is no better alternative to this entrepreneurial system. And this is because the present welfare system has come of age.

The present framework where the taxes are laid on the salaried workers who are asked to sustain the welfare system, is untenable, and the middle class that constitute the majority of all modern societies are no longer willing to carry this burden. We cannot continue to support every social activity, but we should ensure that the underclass are aided as far as possible.

It follows that the next years will see welfare reform and private pension introduction. the politicians who will encourage such ideas will be scorned and rebuked. But it is a necessary evil.

Next year will be tough, because the world economists envisage very slow growth. There will be some tough reckoning in 2002.

This means that the present government must have a very precise approach to next year’s governance. It also marks the crucial year before a referendum and a national election - two events that will definitely play a major role in shaping the future of this country.

Are we to go up the European route or tumble down the Swiss in the Med proposal.

Only time will tell, the ball is firmly in the people’s court.

A joyous Christmas to you all.