Chris Said pledges sociological study for PN to understand people's aspirations

The leadership contender said the study would allow the party to once again be steps ahead in its vision for society 

PN MP Chris Said
PN MP Chris Said

Nationalist Party leader hopeful Chris Said has pledged to commission a broad sociological study of Maltese society, that would allow the PN to "understand the changes that have taken place in recent years".

Speaking at a press conference in Valletta this morning, Said said this would allow the PN to better understand people's problems and aspirations, while having a vision of society that was ahead of the times.

"The PN was always steps ahead in its vision but in the last years that vision had stalled and society surpassed the PN, which on occasions reacted late or even in the wrong way," he said.

"We need to work towards a situation where society follows the PN automatically."

Only in this way, he said, could the PN go from passive spectator to agent of change. 

With this in mind, the Gozitan MP said the study would be focusing on seven main points: the family, work, quality of life, living together, good governance and communication.

Said said the study would identify the "types of families" that make up society, and to identify those families most at risk of poverty.

It would also offer the party insight into who the country’s workers are, as well as answer questions such as how many were part of a union and the number of people working under precarious work conditions, among others.

Said stressed that better mental and physical health need to be prioritised and the study would look into issues such as air quality, efficient transport systems and the importance of activities like feasts, sports and hunting.

The segment on living together would look into "who the Maltese people trust" and would consider the differences between those living in different parts of the island and ways of bringing together the rights of the individual and each persons social responsibility.

The study on good governance would allow the PN to find out what people understood good governance to be and what faith they still retained in the country's institutions.

Said said it would also be essential to understand how people communicate. "Has Facebook become the new village square?" he asked.

The priority on education was to determine whether the system was too focused on exams, and whether the tools available to teachers were adequate. He said the study would also identify early school leavers and the reasons they chose not to continue their studies.