Despite the idyllic surroundings of the Melita Gardens in Attard, Labour Deputy leader for Party Affairs Michael Falzon was still in fighting mood as he launched his bid for the Labour leadership yesterday morning.
Flanked by his wife Anna and two children, Martina and Nathaniel, Falzon yesterday responded to claims by Labour secretary-general Jason Micallef that Falzon had asked for an extension in the voting time on the eve of the March 8 general elections, which Labour went on to lose by a sheer 1,500 votes.
“The facts are clear. The percentage of voters went down by 2% nationwide, and the places where the percentage of voters went down was in those localities which are Nationalist strongholds,” Falzon said, answering to questions by MaltaToday to comment on Micallef’s claims.
“In no way could I, or the party, be in a position to take decisions on behalf of the Electoral Commission. The Electoral Commission is a Constitutional body, which takes its decision after consulting the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. Moreover, the majority of the Electoral Commission is appointed by the Government of the day.
“Therefore whoever tries to implicate that I, or someone else of my colleagues from the Labour Electoral Office – I defend them all – did something or took a decision to get the voting time extended by one hour is not living in reality because it was something that was decided by the Electoral Commission,” Falzon said.
He was accompanied by Labour deputy president Louis Gatt and former MP Joe M. Sammut – although party president Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi was not present, a sign of changing alliances party insiders told MaltaToday yesterday.
Pressed by this newspaper about Micallef’s comments, he said: “I shoulder responsibility for what I do. Now with regards to comments made by somebody else, it would be unfair for me to comment about the secretary-general’s comments to a particular newspaper. To be fair with everybody, and I always try to be fair with everybody – it would be better to ask him about his comments.
“I do not tolerate one thing – that somebody tries to impinge on my integrity, seriousness and loyalty that I have shown not only to the party but also to the country,” Falzon said.
Asked whether he would be ready to discuss electoral reform with the PN if elected leader of the MLP, Falzon said that has been involved in these discussions since the 1996 Constitutional amendments.
“When we did the current system, I was in contact with Joe Saliba and we ended up working a lot together one-on-one, as if we were two lovers. We would meet up almost in secret so as not to attract the attention of the newspapers.
“There is always something one can improve. If there’s anything we need to improve, then why not? However, if we are going to improve the electoral law, we have a whole package.
“We’ve been hearing a lot of talk about the public financing of political parties. We had the Galdes report in 1994. Do we really want to seriously discuss this matter? The Nationalist Party knows me a lot. I have discussed a lot with the Nationalist Party since 1996. I was involved in both the last Constitutional amendments as well as in the previous ones.
“We will discuss with the PN, why not? God forbid if we do not discuss to improve things. However I expect that one does not always take the cherry from the cake. They know that I am ready to discuss, even if they sometimes criticise me as well,” Falzon said.

Experience and loyalty
Falzon’s campaign slogan – ‘With Experience and Loyalty, Together Towards Success’ – was a reflection of his experience within the party structures and his loyalty towards the party, even in difficult circumstances such as the 1998 general elections, when he did not agree with the Labour government’s decision to call an early general election.
The keyword for Falzon this time is inclusiveness. “We will formulate our programme for the future together, as a single team, a team open to all those who feel that they have something to contribute to the Labour Party.”
At the same time, Falzon indicated that if he was not elected as party leader on June 6, he would not contest for any of the other party leadership posts.
There was no talk of Falzon’s hoarse entreaty to the “lions of change” – an enduring slogan that has stuck with the deputy leader after chanting to Labour supporters during a mass meeting.
Despite parading his family at the press conference, journalists were expressely asked by his Personal Assistant, Nathalie Attard, not to ask any questions to his children.

czahra@mediatoday.com.mt