Gonzi set to confront rebel MPs in overdue parliamentary group meeting in March
Karl Stagno-Navarra Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is reportedly paving the way to confront rebel MPs and ask for their support, rather than having them hold his government to ransom.
Senior government officials have told MaltaToday that a parliamentary group meeting has been convened over the first two days of March in a bid to “defuse” the tensions that have increased over the last few weeks, only to peak last Tuesday at the news of the Cabinet reshuffle.
The first parliamentary group meeting for this year has reportedly been spread over two days with the scope of allowing “enough time” for MPs to vent their frustrations but it will also serve as an opportunity for the leadership to know where allegiances stand.
A PN official stopped short of saying whether the PM was contemplating calling for a vote of confidence within his group, given that remarks about being “challenged” have been levelled at him.
Aides have reportedly told the PM that the only way forward is for him to confront his MPs and hear them out, “no matter how loud they shout”; but he was also advised to have the last word and to challenge his MPs to see if they really intend to cripple the government.
According to one official, the Prime Minister is being guided to respond to his critics by asking them to list the alternatives and “credible” solutions to their complaints.
But while Lawrence Gonzi struggles to find balancing solutions to the internal crisis he is facing, issues on his political survival continue to surface. While last weeks reshuffle has seen cosmetic changes made to certain ministry’s portfolios, the choice to shift responsibility for Enemalta and Water Services from Austin Gatt to finance minister Tonio Fenech has raised further eyebrows on the backbench.
MPs consider this as a strategic move by the Prime Minister to ease the tensions that have been building over the handling of the utility tariffs, over which a debate in parliament is expected in Parliament the week after the parliamentary group meets.
Added to this is the controversial Delimara power station extension contract that is also expected to be debated in Parliament as soon as the Auditor General publishes his inquiry into the allegations of irregularities during the adjudication process.
A number of MPs have publicly expressed their concern about the €250 million procurement process coupled with the decision of generating power from heavy fuel oil rather than gas as had previously been declared as a national policy.
Former Minister Ninu Zammit, who was relegated to the backbench in 2008 by SMS sent to him by the PM – and which he still keeps on his phone – is one of those who will make his position clear on the power station issue: challenging the choice of technology, among other questionable issues.
On the other hand, Minister Austin Gatt – known to have been in Gonzi’s inner-circle – has not taken the downsizing of his portfolio lightly.
Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono has kept her Gozo ministry, even though it became a fact in Gozo that Chris Said was to be appointed minister instead of her.
Her silence so far speaks volumes, as – unlike Castille – she did not rush out last week to deny MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando’s comments to One News, that “Gonzi’s plan for Gozo had failed.”
MP and Whip David Agius has also privately expressed his disappointment with fellow MPs that he was discarded by the Prime Minister when planning the reshuffle.
And Franco Debono, who last December embarrassed Lawrence Gonzi not purposely not turning up for a parliamentary vote, is also reportedly set to speak up and is expected to have another showdown with the PM when the Delimara issue is due in parliament.
Sliema heavyweight Robert Arrigo has given up any hope of seeing any change in attitude. He has been on the front-line to react to attacks coming his way from insiders, and has written to the Prime Minister the same night the reshuffle was announced, telling him that “your politics of exclusion has been confirmed.”
With his one-seat majority, the Prime Minister is also facing a dwindling public perception of his authority, as the announcement of “substantial changes” are to be made to the proposed primary healthcare reform, hours after Floriana MP Jean-Pierre Farrugia’s declared veto, has stirred general speculation as to who is really in command.
MaltaToday is informed that the Prime Minister met Jean-Pierre Farrugia on Sunday afternoon at Villa Francia in Lija, where it was reportedly made known to him that health minister Joe Cassar was being asked to shrug off the general practitioners’ lobby and to delay the reform.
This decision, announced by Joe Cassar on his very first week at Palazzo Castellania, has in a few words crippled his ministry from the very start, as he struggles to find the money to sustain an increasingly unsustainable service.
But Lawrence Gonzi is also being confronted by internal critics who claim that he has promised “too much” during the 2008 electoral campaign, and given the financial situation, he has absolutely no room for manoeuvre.
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.
