Letters | Sunday, 22 February 2009

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

A monument for democracy

Malta is not the centre of the earth; so we must be careful not to expect anybody to owe us anything. Every person in the world can be a contributor, and we are no exception. History has proven we can be great contributors in various fields. That makes us the great country we are. Even though we have no material natural resources, we have prospered well beyond many others. The reason is that we always had a huge asset – the Maltese people. Unfortunately, we often walk with heavy feet all over our own riches – our own people.
With the recent Cathedral Museum saga, the fact remains that democracy, the opinion of many people, prevailed, so that makes it a victory for Malta. The reason is again – the Maltese people. We are lucky to have three highly influential leaders with so much charisma: Dr Joseph Muscat, Dr Lawrence Gonzi, and Mgr Paul Cremona.
According to media reports, around 30% (or more?) of the Maltese people were in favour of the Cathedral Museum extension. That means that it was not only just some members of the PN itself that were against it. The matter could have been solved in five minutes – just by offering a ‘free secret vote’ in Parliament. This was never proposed. Members of Parliament (all 69 of them) have the power to find out what their followers wish, and to act accordingly; but only if they are free from the ‘chains’ that their party imposes on them. This great country would be far more ahead if only our parliamentarians accept the responsibility to take more ‘free secret voting’.
Dr Joseph Muscat can be a great leader and a great Prime Minister. He is inexperienced in the maladministered art of politics. It is a pity he is the leader of an “opposition” party, rather than the leader of a “proposition” party; but many people are following him very attentively with the thought of electing him to Prime Minister.
The beauty of our present politics is that the number of “free voters” is on the increase. This means that more people are less afraid to express their opinion openly. It is not only these people who might vote for Dr Muscat eventually, but also quite a few strong PN followers. The reason is not that Dr Gonzi might not be good enough, but because he is facing the problem that the PN has been there too long, and many people might just opt for a change, even just for the sake of it. The present bets are on Dr Muscat as a future Prime Minister.
It would be a pity if he throws it away with inappropriate statements. Nobody can fool all the people all the time. The Labour Party had conducted research as to why they have been losing elections. Have they done any research as to why the PN keeps winning? The ever growing majority of ‘free voting’ Maltese people can and will provide the answer. We never really cared if it was the Phoenicians, or the Arabs, or the Knights, or the British, who governed. We do not care if it is Labour or Nationalists; all we care is that we can look after ourselves and each other, and that our country prospers. To achieve that we must not oppose – but propose. Negativity leads to nowhere nice; only positivity can achieve it. The Labour delegates chose him; now they must let him lead with a positive style of politics.
Dr Gonzi is a great leader too. At least most of the Maltese people thought so during the last elections, even though the situation might have appeared otherwise, and appears even more so in four years’ time. Dr Gonzi managed even now to reverse an apparently ‘already approved’ situation. The extension to the Cathedral Museum was backed by the majority of his own party, and now it is not going to be built. Some people might say that he has absolute power even over the Curia; but another way of looking at things is that he has the power of democratic persuasion, and ensuring democracy. A winner. Dr Muscat has only four years to prove that he can be a very positive leader for all the Maltese people as a complete nation. He can do it, if he is allowed.
Mgr Paul Cremona may be a little disappointed to see the Curia project being shelved. The Curia must wait patiently; over some years many people change their minds. It is easy to assume and to judge Mgr Cremona; but who of us has walked a million steps in his shoes? He could have chosen to wash his hands and wait for the vote from Parliament, but his name is Paul, not Pontius and he accepted the responsibility to take a decision. One way of looking at the outcome is that perhaps Mgr Cremona saw that upholding democracy (the wish of the people) was more important than the world famous tapestries. Tapestries outlive a person’s life. People have only one life – and they all hope that during their journey in this life it can be pleasant.
The museum can wait – but another monument for democracy has just appeared out of a controversy. We are a great nation and we deserve people like Dr Muscat, Dr Gonzi, and Mgr Cremona – and all the others that preceded them from all walks of life. Politics is the “art” of administering a people. We must never allow politics to be used to divide us. We must use politics to ensure that we always win together. We must be free to express ourselves without fear, even strongly when needed; but we must also be wise and humble to acknowledge the many times when agreements are more rewarding because, they strengthen the foundations for more monuments of democracy.

Reggie Debono
Attard

Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below.
Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.