Feed him to the wolves...

On February 3, The Times reported that many who had replied to its online poll commented on the lines "that the opposition cannot be trusted, hence the government would win not only because of any of the merits it may have but because there is no alternative".

Labour cannot be trusted, presumably under the leadership of Alfred Sant, has almost become a cliché, probably because, as they say, if you keep throwing mud, some is likely to stick.

But how justified is this allegation? Under the leadership of Dr Sant, who, like all human beings on this planet, has his good and bad points, the Labour Party got rid of all the violent elements in its midst. It no longer resorts to bullying tactics and, as Dr Sant had promised before the 1996 election, MLP supporters did not celebrate the victory at the polls by going on the rampage. He kept his word.

When, in 1996, Dr Sant became Prime Minister, he honoured the two major promises made to the electorate: the replacement of the Value Added Tax and the freezing of the EU application. Whether these decisions were right or not is not the issue. The issue is that he kept the promise made to the electorate. Many in his own ranks, including the Finance Minister, wanted him to make a U-turn on the two issues because they felt it would be for the good of the party and the country but had he taken their advice he would have ignored the decision approved by the MLP general conference prior to the election. Again, he stuck to his word.

In his short period as Prime Minister, unlike his predecessors both Labour and Nationalists, Dr Sant tried to introduce some sanity in the public sector, the army and the police. There was no purge against Nationalist Party supporters working in these sectors. Indeed, his first directive as Prime Minister to the heads of the civil service was to retain all employees in their post, except for the ministers' private staff.

He retained the President appointed by the Nationalist government. When soon after the election I interviewed Dr Sant and asked him if he would replace President Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, he replied: "I do not feel uncomfortable working with him". Some may argue that according to the Constitution the President cannot be removed without any justified reason but we all know that had Dr Sant wanted to he could have made that possible.

The President was not the only prominent figure the Labour Prime Minister retained. Dr Sant also felt comfortable working with the chairmen of the boards and other organisations appointed by the Nationalist government. He retained all of them even though some had come in for harsh criticism from him during the election campaign. When John C. Grech's term of office as chairman of the Bank of Valletta came to an end, the MLP appointed another in his post, but Dr Grech was offered the chair of the Malta Financial Services Authority, which he declined.

Before the election, Dr Sant promised to revive tourism and within 18 months he transformed Bugibba, Marsascala and Birzebbuga and embellished a number of other sites. I don't want to enter into the achievements of the MLP's short term in power but, considering the vicious attempts from within and outside the party to undermine him, he and his party achieved a lot.

As for membership of the European Union, Dr Sant had declared from the start that regardless of the referendum result, he would only accept membership of the EU if the decision to join was endorsed by the election result.

When the election result was announced, Dr Sant declared that the EU was no longer an issue. This he did despite a very strong anti-EU movement in his own ranks, including a former Labour Prime Minister. These feel Labour should retain its pre-referendum policy on the EU. Again, as a man of principle, Dr Sant stuck to his word.

It is also worth mentioning, that during the EU referendum campaign, Dr Sant warned workers that once Malta joined the EU their jobs would be on the line. He even mentioned a number of companies by name. Many accused him of using such tactics to scare the electorate.

Today almost all companies he mentioned by name have either folded up or are on the verge of doing so.

And unlike a former Labour Prime Minister, whom many in the PN camp despised but now glorify, Dr Sant dresses smartly, talks politely - too politely perhaps - and behaves like a gentleman. So since he cannot be criticised on these points, the Nationalists decided to demonise him, then feed him to the wolves.

They even accuse him of being thirsty for power, but I find it hard to remember any Prime Minister who resigned after less than two years in office in order to retain his credibility and his dignity.

The above proves that Dr Sant does not renege on his promises and the allegations that he cannot be trusted are a spin, a figment of the imagination and only motivated by partisan politics.

On the other hand, I will not pass judgment on whether the PN should be trusted or not, but I suggest that those who believe so should go through its electoral manifesto.

Mr Vella is a former newspaper editor.