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LETTERS | Wednesday, 4 June 2008 Coming to a conclusion Since the announcement of the stepping down of Dr Alfred Sant we managed to get lots of hidden news but now we have arrived at the end. Now the man in the street, the delegates, the Labourites and all those interested can come to a conclusion. One now can decide to whom he prefers, but apart from choosing the leader one can also conclude on other issues.
One can conclude that this group known as the “Bord Tal-Vigilanza” is the most comic thing there is in the Malta Labour Party. Definitely the party has to get rid of this group cause it managed to do everything apart from being healthy. Secondly one might say that the campaign was too long (and in my opinion it was a bit) but one positive thing about it was that we managed to see the different ways of doing politics of all the five contestants. I think that whoever followed what was happening step by step, shifted their choice from one candidate to the other but now definitely everyone is convinced on whom they would like to see as a leader. Another conclusion that can be drawn is that the party needs a good shake-up and a new way of doing politics. One can say that defeat is always bad, but to be honest this defeat was needed because if the new leader manages to choose the right entourage around him, surely this could be the healthiest thing that might have happened. The MLP needs to get rid of those people who in these last few years turned the party in their hands, and needs to input new faces with new ideas. The party needs to be more media friendly. It needs to accept that not everyone thinks the same way as the leader does but it has to allow these people to pin point out their points of view. It needs to be more democratic. It has been also concluded that the party has got valid persons, but needs to know how to make these people part of its family. The party needs more professionalism and needs to be updated from time to time. We can conclude that if the MLP manages to make all these changes, it would be a party more at ease with itself, and would attract more new voters. Hopefully within five years we will turn back and conclude that if these changes were not effected, we would not be here. Ramon Muscat Via email MLP – racing to defeat The recently published MLP election analysis report resembles a car racing Formula 1 grand prix loss analysis report: The track was slippery, we could have used better tyres, we could have done with two pit stops instead of three, refuelling took too long... and blaming everything on the conditions, engineers technicians, etc. In my opinion the root of the problem goes back to 2003 when the MLP committed a major crucial error of electing the same leader after three consecutive major electoral defeats (two elections and a referendum). In 2003 delegates were forced to elect a leader without even a discussion on the referendum/election defeat! In modern democracies party leaders simply disappear from the scenes after the loss of just one election. Blaming a defeat on any one of the two deputy leaders is pure fiction. Michael Falzon can surely be credited with turning the MLP’s tragic-comic electoral machine into one matching and exceeding the PN’s both in organisation and discipline. I understand that the commission had a very short timeframe to prepare the report. However, how many pro-MLP voters who abstained did the commission bother to interview/ask for their reasons for not voting? On a positive note, if the MLP with all these shortcomings managed to increase thousands of votes and the PN lost thousands, what would have been the result with a change in leadership? Come 5 June lets all start working to get rid of this minority government. Bertu Pace Siggiewi Divided Labour could keep PN out In your article headed: “Division of Labour? A party's split personality”, you state “PN circles are already revelling in the prospect of an MLP split which would consign them the keys of government for a very long time.” Albert Petrocochino George Abela will bring success At last the much-awaited moment, that of electing a new Labour leader, has arrived. This moment is not only important for the Labour party but also for the country in general because it will shape the future of politics in Malta. Eric Saliba Bring on Bartolo Evarist Bartolo said he wants a new Constitution recognising and protecting civil society, incorporating NGOs, animal rights, minorities, alternative lifestyles, and gay rights among other things. Adrian Aquilina St John Government committed to fireworks control I refer to the letter “No political will to control fireworks” signed by Dominic Chircop which appeared in MaltaToday Midweek on May 28, 2008. Darrell Pace Surcharge and public energy A further increase in energy bills will only make life more difficult for thousands of Maltese families. Michael Briguglio Any comments? |
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