Karl Stagno-Navarra
Labour leader Joseph Muscat last night looked straight into the lens of a One TV camera to reiterate a strong message to his grassroots support: “This is your chance to send a clear message to government; do not be complacent with your vote, use it.”
A concise message, but surely Muscat has stepped up the pressure on his own campaign at getting out the vote, as Europe-wide turnouts for these elections are heading for an all-time low.
Just over a year since Labour’s shock defeat in the general election, and less than a year since his own election to party leader, Joseph Muscat desperately needs this vote to acquire a clear, popular mandate that will not only confront Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi on national issues, but also consolidate his role as Prime Minister in-waiting for the rest of the legislature.
Replying to questions by TV personality Simone Cini during a public interview in Joanne Gardens in Tarxien, Joseph Muscat insisted this was a “difficult election” for Labour, adding that many Labourites had either given up or become sceptical about politics.
Joseph Muscat is sticking to his cautious approach on how to interpret reports about voter surveys that have put PL well in the lead for next Saturday’s election.
He warned about the hype that led to the belief that a clear labour win was written on the wall during last year’s general election. But Joseph Muscat knows that this is not a general election and moreover, Lawrence Gonzi will still be the Prime Minister on Monday.
The issue Joseph Muscat wants his party to understand, however, is that this is not just a European game. Most of all, next Saturday’s vote will be his first and most important test since he was elected PL leader a few months ago by party delegates.
Joseph Muscat is cautiously calculating his future, because he desperately needs to consolidate an absolute majority to be able to clinch that mandate and catapult his party as the trusted alternative to Lawrence Gonzi’s administration.
He also needs that clear majority to be able to put the spoke into the wheel of the Prime Minister’s legitimacy in office with just a handful of votes.
Last night – as in previous occasions – Joseph Muscat has once again directly attacked Prime Minister Gonzi’s credibility, by listing a series of issues that are the talk of the day.
Shooting down the Prime Minister’s appeals for the campaign to be directed solely on European issues, Joseph Muscat goes on to insist that this is not just a European game, but one to respond to what he defines as an arrogant administration, that has broken all electoral promises and is ignoring people’s hardships.
He digs in where it hurts, and people respond, especially when he mentions water and electricity, hunting and trapping, and illegal immigration.
All are populist issues, and put into context, could also be interpreted as European issues that place PN at a disadvantage.
On illegal immigration, Joseph Muscat responds to what the Maltese want to hear: “Yes, we will use our veto with no shame at all, until Brussels and other governments will finally understand our plight,” he insisted last night.
But he was also cautious not to be branded as racist. Muscat stressed the unacceptable living conditions migrants are subjected to in detention in Malta.
On the environment, Joseph Muscat was clear about his MEP’s taking all the necessary measures within all the European institutions to halt further harm to the promised paradise.
With an obvious reference to the contract granted last week by government to BWSC for the extension of the Delimara Power Station, Joseph Muscat hit out again at Minister Austin Gatt’s recent comments that the new plant will produce just ‘some dust’.
He challenged the Minister to be truthful to the people and admit that the new plant will produce tonnes of toxic waste, without also mentioning government’s intention to develop an incinerator in the area.
Presenter Simone Cini insisted that Malta’s South has become a dustbin, receiving a nodding acknowledgement from Joseph Muscat who promised a serious and credible approach to the environment by Labour.
On healthcare, Joseph Muscat struck a chord by stressing that he will work to achieve the successes in the sector by having free health for all in past labour administrations.
Without mentioning his predecessor Alfred Sant, and his famous after election quote about “power of incumbency”, Joseph Muscat challenged the Prime Minister to be a man and confront elections in a just and fair way, by passing a law that would prohibit any government to grant permits, give jobs, and promise the world on the eve of a general election.
In his closing remarks, Joseph Muscat also referred to the local council elections that will be held con-currently with the European Parliament elections.
Here too, Joseph Muscat knows that he will come out even more victorious to also have a majority in local councils, especially in localities that today hold a nationalist majority.
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