Opinion • 23 March 2003

Simpler than I thought

Saviour Balzan reminds the readers that on April 12 the vote is for Europe and not for the PN

Readers of MaltaToday, please excuse us if you read more untruth in the next few weeks. Those who argue that the media can be a stooge are not far from the truth. Let it be known to our readers that very few journalists are in a position to ask the right questions to our political leaders. There is simply too much media control. We will try our best but it will be difficult, the pressure on journalists and the media in general is far too great. So please take everything with a pinch of salt.

Now back to the real thing. As the US and the UK infringe international law and offer a precedent to other states to take the law into their own hands and do a little bit of warmongering or precise bombing, Malta braces itself for some more uncertainty.

Those who suggest that April 12 will be a close call are more or less correct. It will not be if the Labourites that voted for Europe vote for the Nationalist party.

What will it take for Labourites to vote for the PN?

The first and foremost it is for the PN to try and understand that no one owes it another five years. What the pro-Europe Labourites want to hear is some certainty about the future of Malta in Europe.

The recent Prime Ministerial public apology to disgruntled voters may have followed this line of thought. Yet, it did not address the basic issues that simply cannot be ignored: on the domestic front, there was too little too late.

Ok, some ministers performed far better than others, but there were some who were simply ‘not there.’

The above will no doubt be reproduced, in censored form, in some MLP promo.

Nevertheless, the fact is that losing out on Europe is a risk we cannot take. And this is the message that must be relayed.

Unlike many of my colleagues in the press I do not shudder at the thought of a change in government, but I do concern myself that the leader of opposition will proceed to dismantle all that we have achieved in the last years with regard to EU accession.

I am also at odds with some of his arguments even though he can be convincing and focussed.

There are few choices to make on April 12. It is far simpler than we thought. We must simply ensure that we get into Europe. After that it will be an endless and reckless battle to get the new Nationalist government to implement the rules they say they will take on board.

It is going to be a killing time for the media, and one hopes the press will rise to the occasion. Issa naraw!