Victor Spiteri, like all pro-PN writers, tries to belittle the extraordinary abilities of Alfred Sant as a leader (Sant's Negative Record, June 1). What people like Mr Spiteri should keep in mind is the difference in approach towards solving the country's problems under Dr Sant's 1996-98 Labour government and the present PN government led by Lawrence Gonzi.
A political leader of quality goes about solving the country's problems without negatively affecting the quality of life of his people. Dr Sant as Prime Minister managed to do this. Lawrence Gonzi, on the other hand, boasts of the government's achievements without mentioning the totally unacceptable social costs of such achievements.
Let me give some examples. During the period 1996-98, the Labour government actually increased its outlay on the social benefit known as "children's allowance". Over the past 10 years, Nationalist governments have cut expenditure on children's allowance from Lm33 million to Lm14 million. This trend was initiated by former Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami and has now been continued by his successor.
Did Dr Sant reduce people to poverty to achieve his aims? Of course not! What do we find, instead, under Dr Gonzi? The Survey on Income and Living Conditions 2005: Salient Indicators (National Statistics Office 075/2007) shows that 14.9 per cent of all the population, i.e. 59,315, are living below the poverty line. The same survey also shows that the number of children who are living in poverty increased from 20 per cent in 2000 to 22 per cent in 2005. The survey further shows that 50 per cent of all people seeking employment and 48 per cent of single-parent families are also living in poverty.
Is this the progress Dr Gonzi boasts of? Is this the PN Leader who dares to criticise Dr Sant's record? Under Dr Sant progress was not achieved at the cost of reducing people to poverty!
Of course, PN apologists will come up with the usual argument that Labour under Dr Sant is no alternative to a Nationalist government under Dr Gonzi. "What is Labour offering as a new beginning should it be elected to government?", they will ask. "Labour has not come up with any concrete proposals to solve the country's problems", they will continue to argue.
People should not be fooled by such misleading arguments. The truth is that during the last two-and-a-half years, the MLP has presented more than a hundred concrete proposals, contained in 12 plans and six vision statements, which were drawn up after long and detailed consultations with more than 150 entities representing all sectors of civil society as well as hundreds of private individuals. Labour is ready to govern. Labour is ready to provide not only an alternative government but, also, a better one. Labour will give back to citizens the dignity and the respect they deserve. Labour will not resort to empty boasting about what are, in reality, Pyrrhic victories the high cost of which has to be borne by the citizen.
Dr Sant will soon be Malta's next PM. At the coming general election, he will lead the MLP to victory on merit. As Prime Minister, he led the country on a course of steady progress without disrupting the life of the Maltese people as Nationalist Prime Ministers have done. As Leader of the Opposition, he has created the blueprint for a new beginning for Malta and the Maltese people. The next election will be more than a Labour victory, it will be a victory by the people for the people.
There will still be some PN propagandists who will continue to denigrate Dr Sant but then one should keep in mind what Albert Einstein once said: "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities".