Elimination of Western entries turns spotlight on voting pattern

Malta is forever moaning it has no neighbours when it comes to garnering votes in the Eurovision Song Contest, but this year it's all the Western countries, left out of tonight's final, who are voicing their chorus of disapproval.

Countries such as Cyprus and Switzerland, two favourites that had been tipped to qualify, are even threatening to withdraw from the contest.

Maltasong chairman Robert Abela, however, believes taking a break from competing would not be a wise move for Malta, though he does feel people's expectations should not hinge so resolutely on winning.

"The fact there is not one single Western country among the top 10 that qualified to the next round is a clear indication that this festival has become all about the country and not the song. So what I am saying is let's go to the festival to compete and do well, but let's keep this point in mind," he said, when asked if the festival had become one big joke.

Mr Abela said withdrawing from the festival would only be a consideration if there were to be a collective move by a number of countries to hold a boycott.

The outcome of Thursday's semi-final has put the present televoting system under the spotlight after Eastern and Central European countries filled every one of the 10 qualifying spots. On the other hand, countries that had been tipped to do well by both fans and betting companies, such as Switzerland, Cyprus, Malta, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland, have been eliminated.

Surrounded by board members who all rallied in support, Mr Abela said in the light of this the European Broadcasting Union should definitely look into the way votes were being cast.

"I feel the EBU should ensure the voting is more transparent and that everyone is playing the same game," he insisted.

Many international journalists and fans have been muttering between themselves and questioning whether certain countries, especially former Soviet states, were actually presenting the people's televoting result or manipulating the vote.

It is a known fact that countries approach one another to barter votes and fix the result. A source told The Times that one competing country even approached Malta this year asking: "If we give you five points, how many will you give us?"

"This was not an option Malta was willing, or even in a position, to consider. These things happen all the time. Everybody knows about it, but nobody ever says anything," the source added.

The fact that Malta has failed to qualify means whoever wins next year's Song for Europe Festival will have to face the same ordeal as Olivia Lewis and first compete in a semi-final.

This result has spurred many to ask if the Maltasong board will be resigning.

"All I can say is that the matter of whether we resign or not will be discussed at the next board meeting," Mr Abela said.

Philip Vella, the composer of Vertigo, who has reached the Eurovision finals four times, believes the board did its utmost to promote the song and ensure a good product was delivered on the night.

"I cannot see how a chairman can control the result of the festival," he said. Mr Vella agrees with Mr Abela that despite the blatant neighbourly voting, Malta should continue taking part in the Eurovision.

"The Eurovision is a stage where we can showcase our product to nearly 100 million television viewers. However, let us change our mentality and instead of coming here with the sole intention of winning, promote the Maltese product," he said.

On the other hand, former chairman Norman Hamilton believes it's time for Malta to take a break from competing for a year or two until things settled down and then start the race on a level playing field.

As questions abound on what Malta can do to get back into the Eurovision's final night, and theories are voiced about what went wrong, Olivia Lewis was yesterday coming to terms with the result.

"At first we were all weeping and hugging each other, but now it's time to move on," she said, as she got ready to leave the hotel for some retail therapy.

"After the performance I was on such a dizzying high that I was suffering from vertigo," she said, with a hearty laugh.

"So as you can imagine, the disappointment of not making it was even bigger. When the results started to be announced and I realised that the top favourites weren't there, I knew we would be out," she added.

How did she feel about the voting?

"If I were naïve about the political voting then I would say that Eastern countries tend to like one another's music. They play this music in clubs and not our Western pop music," she pointed out.

So would Olivia Lewis contemplate competing in the Eurovision again?

"I never say never. If I come across a song I really like then I may be tempted."

Olivia and the Maltese delgation will arrive tomorrow at 12.45 p.m. from Frankfurt.

Hamilton Travel made this coverage possible.