Vying for the hot seat

In between one flight and another, I was given a slot to interview the man in Malta who must have amassed the most air miles: Michael Frendo, who has been on the local political scene for 20 years and is now vying for the Commonwealth hot seat.

As soon as I walked in to his office, he told me that he was so tired - he had only returned to Malta that morning from a week abroad in different places - that he was wondering whether he should have a check-up. Instead, he went home and got a few hours sleep. We sat down on the sofa in his office and started to discuss his dream of becoming the secretary general of such a huge organisation.

What attracted him, he explained, was not the hefty pay packet but the development challenge.

"I think that in today's world, development is extremely important because it is a moral imperative for all of us who are living in better conditions to help those who are worse off.

"But it is also in our interest to do so because we cannot expect to have stability and deal with the issue of illegal immigration unless we tackle the issue of development of these countries. The Commonwealth has a tremendous future as a development organisation where countries, using the concept of sharing, would help fellow members to accelerate their development process in terms of trade, project, training, infrastructure, expertise and ICT. Part of this development is the issue of good governance - a contribution to better governance, democracy, human rights. It is an extremely challenging post," he said.

Asked what areas he thought the Commonwealth should focus upon, Dr Frendo mentioned a number of challenges facing several countries in the world. He said it had to focus on areas such as climate change and the way it affects member countries, as well as how to address the problem. Another issue is human resource development. There are many countries that produce nurses, teachers and doctors and then lose them to other economies. The point is not to stop the flow of people movement but to ensure that countries benefitting from finding trained personnel contribute more towards development in their countries of origin, so that they can move forward too.

The post of secretary general, however, will be much different to his experience in Malta's Parliament. What makes him think that he is suitable for the job?

"I have been in parliament for 20 years and this is very important. I have been involved in the development process of my country since 1987 and witnessed its transformation in many ways. Although I have only been Foreign Minister for just over three years, having this experience has sensitised me on the need for development in other countries. At 52, I feel I have drive and energy to give to this post what it requires." It is certainly not a way of retiring, he said jokingly.

I ask him in jest whether he was also attracted to the generous salary he will be receiving if elected. His smile fades away quickly and he replies in a more serious tone: "Certainly not", explaining that there are other ways to earn a hearty salary which would not be as demanding as being secretary general of the Commonwealth. "I can return to my private practice, but I'm seeing this as a challenge. If it doesn't happen, I am here to serve my country if people are willing to give me the opportunity," he said.

His family, he explained, was very supportive and his wife and three children were all involved in the decision over whether he should go for the job. "It took a bit of convincing occasionally, but they were very supportive," he said.

His son Luke is 21, while his daughters Sara and Julia are 19 and 9 respectively. "I had to discuss it with them because the job will require me moving to London. We have to see if we will all move because two of them are still at university. They felt that this would be a very challenging post for me and also a prestigious post for our country. It will make Malta very visible," he said.

Dr Frendo said that if he landed the job, he would not consider it as the peak of his career, but more an a part of the evolutionary process. The secretary general is elected for a term of four years and may be re-elected for just one more term.

So might Dr Frendo return to the local political scene after a stint as secretary general? "I have not thought of that. In life one excludes nothing, but yes I still believe I have a contribution to make to the political scene in Malta. This is where I spent all my time in politics. I am always ready to serve my country," he said.

Looking back on his 20-year political career in Malta, Dr Frendo said it has been fulfilling. "The eight years I spent away from the Government, which preceded my appointment as foreign minister, were very formative. They allowed me to come back relatively fresh."

And he believes that the campaign for secretary general - his main challenger is the Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Kamalesh Sharma - has been clean. "I don't believe in putting down the opposition. I believe in showing what your merits are and why people should go for you, based on your points of action. It's an issue of what the leaders want from the Commonwealth at the end of the day and if they want to continue to tackle issues," he said.

When asked on his feelings regarding reports that the UK is not supporting his candidacy, he said: "Everybody is free to make their own choices. The UK and Malta are in the EU and have a long history of working together. We fought and died together and there is a strong bond between the two people. We have to wait for election day to find out what is going to happen."

With a big smile, he refused to say, however, which countries he knows will be supporting him. "I can assure you that I have a lot of support and I think we stand a good chance. But there's an equal chance we won't succeed," he said.

He insisted that the Commonwealth is still a relevant organisation, saying it did a lot of work behind the scenes which did not receive much publicity. "The Commonwealth is a process of engaging with young people. It does many things which very often do not get into the international media. This in itself shows that it is still relevant. The Commonwealth is a development organisation and it has to keep working on the development process. It is the organisation with the most small island states and this remains an important focus. It is also the second largest organisation in the world after the UN. It has the moral obligation to put forward its views and be heard."

Turning to the situation in Pakistan, Dr Frendo, who chairs the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group, said Malta's position reflected what had been decided at the CMAG meeting last week. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf was given until November 22 to carry out a number of changes: to remove his military uniform, respect the independence of the judiciary, and hold elections within a constitutional framework. And if Pakistan fails to comply, the Commonwealth will discuss suspending it from its council. CMAG had to ensure that it was the guardian of Commonwealth principles, he said.

There are people who believe that CMAG should have pushed for harsher measures against Pakistan. However, Dr Frendo refuted the suggestion that he was personally against it because he is counting on the country's vote in the election.

"No I was not worried about the vote. The issue was never that. If there was an issue, we had to carry out our job in a serious way. My credibility is very important. It was not my consideration and it will not be one," he said.

Asked about the challenges facing Malta from a foreign policy perspective, Dr Frendo mentioned continuing to strengthen the Mediterranean agenda of the EU.

"There is a lot of work that still has to be done. We are pursuing very actively this initiative with the Arab League. It has taken a very long time to come to fruition and we are doing what the Maltese know best: not giving up. I strongly believe that it will be of tremendous benefit to the EU, the Arab League and to Malta and the Mediterranean because we are creating dialogue between the EU and its neighbours and the neighbours of its neighbours," he said.

Dr Frendo said that for the first time since Malta became independent, the island would be setting up an embassy in Tel Aviv and a representation office in Ramallah or east Jerusalem.

Bilaterally, he said, the island must continue to make use of nearby markets. There is a lot of emphasis on Libya at the moment and he has been there on more than 15 occasions since he took office three-and-a-half years ago. "We have to continue working on other markets, including Algeria, Tunisia and eventually Morocco. We have to keep this focus and we need to continue looking at other markets such as Canada and also encourage entrepreneurs to take advantage of the single market."

So would Dr Frendo miss Malta if he is elected secretary general on Saturday? "That is obvious. Malta is my home and a country I am very proud of. The Maltese are tremendously successful and Malta is one of the most successful small states in the world. We should take care of it and look at the way the future generation can continue to enjoy a healthy way of life," he said.