ToonToday: Fair play

Editorial • 12 JANUARY 2003

The need for the media to understand and be understood

Featured in this newspaper, we come across two of some five interviews with two different individuals of similar political hue but differing standing and calibre.

Keith Grech a youngish Labour councillor talks on issues and provides some valid comments about where the Labour Party should stand in the referendum. And former Education minister Evarist Bartolo stands his ground on Kenneth Wain and the EU.

But it is Evarist Bartolo’s comment on the media that interests us most. The Mellieha born University lecturer is unrepentant when he talks about the Maltese media and we take note of his comments.

In normal circumstances, the media monitors a government and not the other way round, in his view this does not happen in Malta because media confuse their roles and…

He believes the shareholders have a political bias and links with the Nationalist Party.

This is not untrue nor completely false.

But Mr Bartolo is aware that generalisations can be dangerous.

Yet, he goes on to mention three topics which he argues the media did not take up; he points to the case of the PN attack on the Ombudsman, and the Broadcasting Authority’s Chairman Joe Said Pullicino.

But wait a minute. This is unfair.

MaltaToday and we only speak for ourselves, had stated over and over again, that the Prime Minister cannot make appointments and then castigate these appointees because they do not follow the piper’s tune.

This however does not stop us from commenting on the ‘nature of the criticism’ raised.

For example on ex-Chief Justice, Joe Said Pullicino: we fully concur with the criticism that the present BA Chairman who was also criticised by Labour on separate topics, had made the wrong judgements on the controversy of political spots.

Mr Bartolo continues to believe that we are unwilling to point our guns at the NP.

This is grossly incorrect. If there is reason to fire salvos at the NP we will gladly be the first ones to do so.

But why toss hand grenades on matters uch as the Europe question, or the VAT and tax evasion issues, when we believe that this is way forward.

The one truth that we cannot deny Evarist Bartolo , is his argument for the need of new faces in the running of this country.

Yes, we agree that this country needs its own rinascimento in the corridors of power. This is the essence of democracy.

We recall that we were among the first to argue that Alfred Sant should have had his full five years of governance.

But the criteria for taking hold of government can never be based on the principle of musical chairs but on what political parties have to offer and on their capabilities in implementing their political agendas.