‘It would pain me not to contest next election’ – Franco Debono

Franco Debono as a Labour candidate in 2018? It is possible.

Here’s how the former Nationalist MP – who was enjoying a spot of fishing yesterday when MaltaToday got in touch with him – put it to me: “It would pain me to see another general election go by without me contesting,” the 42-year-old criminal defence lawyer said.

Not one to shy away from self-advancement, Debono made his mark in politics by breaking ranks with the PN administrating and challenging head-on the former justice minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici for the slow pace of judicial and home affairs reform.

In 2013 he voted against the budget measures appropriation bill, automatically pushing Lawrence Gonzi to call for general elections after losing his one-seat majority. Expelled from the PN, he was appointed Commissioner for Laws by Joseph Muscat’s government.

Now it appears he is openly seeking an invitation from his former Aloysian classmate to run.

“I love politics and when I was asked on One TV whether I would consider running again, I did not rule it out. Now I have street-leaders and local councillors from the fifth district calling me on the phone, saying they would back me if I had to run.

“I have been proposing reforms on justice and home affairs since when I was an MP and much has happened on the back of those proposals. I have much to contribute.”

Debono went public in confirming that he would be interested in contesting the general election on a Labour ticket, if the opportunity presents itself.

“Will I contest the fifth district on a Labour ticket? I’m considering everything. I agree with Labour’s political direction as it corresponds a lot with what I believe in,” Debono said – who in the past has not shied away from criticising the PL administration.

He also spoke of his appreciation for the support shown by Labour voters, including the ‘soldiers of steel’ – a moniker for old guard Labour activists. “I appreciate how several Labour supporters, including those soldiers of steel, are encouraging me to join [Labour] and run for the elections. Sincere thanks,” he said.

He said that if he were to contest, he’d be “the smallest” of them all but with the greatest will. “Together with my childhood friends Joseph Muscat and Edward Zammit Lewis and the rest of the Labour team, I would give it all to see Malta moving forward and become the best in Europe,” Debono said, echoing Muscat’s political battlecry.

So is Debono truly set to be, if elected, a Labour MP? He may not be suffering from entirely bad odds: Labour lost Marlene Farrugia, who set up her own Democratic Party, and also Karmenu Vella, today European Commissioner on this southern district. That leaves ample room for Debono for another stab on the same district that elected him in 2008, even pipping the PN heavyweight Louis Galea for the highest vote count.