A vote for members is no loss of privilege, George Abela tells delegates

Former Labour deputy leader George Abela hopes that next Friday delegates will see the motion to allow all party members a vote in the leadership election as a positive message to the electorate and not as a loss of some privilege on their part.

Speaking at Marsaxlokk, following a brief tour of the market which was bustling with activity yesterday, he was asked about the motion by journalists.

The landmark motion, which is scheduled to be voted on by Labour's delegates at an extraordinary general conference, will, if approved, extend voting rights to Labour's 19,000 members (as opposed to the present 900 delegates alone).

The idea was being lobbied for internally for some time but leadership candidate George Abela expressed it publicly in mid-March.

He would not comment on which way he feels the motion will go, saying that it is up to the delegates to decide. But he insisted that the motion must be discussed in the right spirit.

"I just hope that the arguments are made in a way that delegates don't feel they are losing some privilege but that they are sending a positive message to people out there," he said, pointing out that whichever way it goes, he is comfortable running with both the delegates alone or the members voting for the leadership.

The idea has already received a good measure of support as the extraordinary general meeting was forced through a petition which was endorsed by some 120 delegates - well above the 10 per cent plus required by the party's statute.

However, there is a strong current opposed to the idea with some delegates arguing precisely that they would be forfeiting a privilege which so far only they have enjoyed.

Asked about his campaign, Dr Abela said it had gained a lot of momentum in the past weeks. He reiterated that he feels like the "horse that's coming from behind" but that his bid has gained considerable traction.

Having been out of the party for 10 years, after he resigned in 1998, shortly before the general election which saw Labour back in opposition after a mere 22-month stint, Dr Abela was said by party insiders not to stand a chance when the race for the new leader began in mid-March. Today, however, his prospects are looking better.

"We're in the middle of the campaign and there will be ups and downs," he said. "We hope there will not be too many downs from here till June."

He also joined the criticism being made by his party on the appointment of the PN's communications coordinator as the Prime Minister's press secretary, saying that the government was being "divisive" in the choices it made.

"When it came to the appointment of the PBS editorial board the government acted with good sense, but on the choice of the Prime Minister's communications coordinator this good sense was forgotten and it went for a divisive route," he said, echoing a statement issued by Labour last week on the matter. During a similar activity last week Dr Abela had also shot down the government's offer to have a parliamentary Speaker from the Opposition benches, likening it to trading gold with copper seeing as the government would be widening its slim one-seat majority in the process.

Yesterday, however, the guns were also directed at Lawrence Gonzi - known to be a personal friend of Dr Abela - whom he mentioned by name three times. "I don't feel that Lawrence Gonzi is sending a message that will unite the country... he has just spoken about this on May 1 but rather than words, I would like us to move to facts. If he is the Prime Minister for the whole country, he has to make sure that his decisions are not partisan."