Saviour Balzan | Sunday, 05 April 2009

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So sorry...

I am so very sorry, but this mass hysteria and adulation for Dr George Abela is rather unsettling.
Surely Dr Gonzi’s choice for President was a masterstroke that camouflaged his true intentions. That is, to place Labour leader Joseph Muscat in the undesirable position of having to approve a candidate some hardcore Labourites consider to be an opportunist and a traitor: tough words, but really quite a fair representation of what some militant Labourites think.
When the going got tough, George Abela skilfully found an excuse to exit; in other words, when there was no glory to be sought, Abela did what every Machiavellian does: jump ship.
Now everyone is expecting me to cite examples to justify my comments. Well, here we go.
To start with, everyone seems to have conveniently forgotten George Abela’s role in the run up to the 1996 national election. A national election which led to a Labour victory and a Nationalist defeat, and was marked by two major reforms and many smaller ones.
The first being Malta’s decision to deep-freeze Malta’s application to join the European Union; the second to do away with VAT.
These two measures led to chaos in Malta’s foreign policy and confusion in the tax revenue system for government.
George Abela was no insignificant minion in the Labour party at the time: he was a deputy leader who would pump adrenaline at party rallies and say the most undesirable things about the Nationalists.
He went much further than that, when Alfred Sant did the honourable thing – which turned out to be the most welcome decision of all, that is to call for an early election – it was Abela who suggested that the Labour party should not go for an early election.
Added to all this one cannot erase from one’s memory the theatrics we faced when George Abela, as legal advisor to the GWU, was there on the frontline, together with the militants from the union, barricading and emulating the good old days of Arthur Scargill.
George Abela is not exactly Vaclav Havel. His curriculum vitae reads like someone who was there, never rocked the boat, never took any risks and when the time came crossed the border and took political positions no one would have imagined him to take in the first place.
Hence I can understand the reason for George Vella’s and Alfred Sant’s absence in Parliament last Tuesday. They feel let down by a former colleague.
I would have done the same if I were in Vella’s and Sant’s position. Going back to 1987 one encountered a George Abela who stood in as the most senior representative of the Malta Labour Party on the Electoral Commission: a commission which upheld the electoral boundaries that led to the same electoral result for the Nationalist party, that is a majority of seats but a minority of seats.
Readers who do not remember 1987 should not be shocked if they cannot remember what a smashing time it was. Individuals such as our PM sometimes give you the impression they too do not have any acknowledgment of the past. Many Nationalists believe Gonzi cannot truly appreciate what the Nationalists suffered before 1987.
When George Abela fell out with the GWU, the Nationalist administration was quick to look positively at Dr Abela’s legal firm: namely at MEPA, where his legal firm moved in... even though a team of full-time lawyers were already in place and doing sterling work at MEPA. And Dr Abela was also appointed to MEUSAC, clearly embarrassing Alfred Sant who remained resolutely against Malta’s entry into the EU.
When Alfred Sant lost the election one more time in 2003, everyone expected George Abela to reappear and try his luck with the leadership. He would have had a very good chance. But he chose not to. Why not? It is a good question to ask.
Abela, I am told, is the kind of guy who will only walk to a throne if afforded red carpet treatment with two rows of knights in shining armour clapping and screaming their heads off in appreciation.
And in 2003, there was no red carpet treatment.
Then he disappeared, shunning the press, never talking to the media and never putting pen to paper to express his political ideas.
When Alfred Sant lost once again in 2008, Abela did the unthinkable. He chose to contest, and whether we like it or not, he acquired an interesting amount of applause and support from Labour delegates. Not enough to win over Joseph Muscat, but enough to exit respectfully.
When Muscat did win, Abela was asked to consider contesting for the European elections. He gave Muscat the impression he would.
Then, in December, Abela’s former University classmate Lawrence Gonzi asked him if he would accept to be a candidate for President.
Gonzi had said the same thing to Louis Galea. Anyone close to Galea will confirm how hurt and irritated he is with Gonzi. Then Galea should have been warned about Gonzi’s habit of making empty promises. I am informed that he had heard about them but never believed the rumours.
Abela’s moment had arrived. At the relatively tender age of 60, he is Malta’s President.
Our presidency is a symbolic and ceremonial position with no real clout - it will not determine the future of a bumblebee, let alone our lives. A post which is purposely created for self-centred individuals who are more preoccupied with the way they are remembered in the history books. The case of Eddie Fenech Adami is perhaps the best example I can think of. After resigning as leader of the party and PM, he appointed himself President.
The Maltese Presidency is a job which comes with no real responsibility, no demand for quick decisions and better still, no need for important decisions or controversial pronouncements. It is best suited to the likes of George Abela... and before he embarks on his five years at San Anton, I thought it fitting to wave my red flag in his honour.
Malta will rejoice at the new President and will embrace Abela. There is no doubt. The superficiality of the masses is there for all to see. Yet in this ocean of sycophants and forgetful citizens, there has to be one ass**** who appoints himself to remind everyone of where people came from and where they are going.

The one-minute resto crit

(For those who wish to boycott the next European elections)
Trattoria Kalliope. Located in the Ortygia historical district, Kalliope offers a variety of dishes in a charming, traditional setting, though seafood reigns supreme. The pasta is homemade and the outdoor terrace is open in summer. €25.00 per person, lunch and dinner. Via del Consiglio Reginale 26.
Don Camillo. This restaurant, with its arched ceilings of stone, was built around a mediaeval structure. As for the cuisine, enjoy the vegetable appetisers, including things like caponata (aubergine salad), but everything was delicious. The pasta with neonati or “mucco” (tiny baby herring) is exceptional. €35.00 per person, for noon or evenings. Via della Maestranza 96.
Trattoria La Foglia. The name means “the leaf”, and this may be fairly appropriate as they actually serve a number of vegetarian dishes. It’s located in a vaguely rustic building in Ortygia near the Arethusa fountain. Several meat specialties and lots of fish and seafood, including grilled tuna steaks. €30.00 per person, noon or evenings. Via Capodieci 21.

Man of the week

Vince Farrugia
The GRTU director who last Sunday, as a PN candidate for the European elections, stated that the Labour party had always (historically) been a party that lived in the ‘dark.’
Appropriately Mr Farrugia did not inform the PN audience that in 1996 his antics against VAT led the country back into the Dark Ages. Not to mention Mr Farrugia’s flirtatious period with Labour before 1987.

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