A long time in politics

The name Joseph Muscat has been known in Labour circles for many years. In the last four he became known nationally as one of the MLP's hardworking MEPs. In the last week he was projected all over the place as the 34-year-old important head of the new leadership which many hope will mould a serious alternative to the long-running Nationalist government.

If there was a surfeit of exposure, it was to be expected. Labour has been in the wilderness for far longer than anyone, let alone those who believe in it, ever expected. American writer Scott Fitzgerald wrote a harrowing short story, The Lost Decade, about an alcoholic who missed out on a full 10 years of his life because of his addiction. The MLP has passed through an even more harrowing experience.

By the end of this government's term it will have lost a whole generation.

Thousands of people have practically no idea of what Labour and its belief in social democracy are all about. As for the MLP past, they hear of it mostly from the adversaries of the party, who relentlessly speak of its mistakes, never of its achievements from when it was a minority coalition partner in the Twenties, through its turbulent years in office in the post-war era as our islands transited from colonial subjugation to an independent nation, with all the economic and social upheavals that historic process brought about.

Muscat, one year older than Dom Mintoff when he formally took the helm of the MLP in 1949, was well placed to strike the right chord. He contested for the leadership on the platform of a New Generation, which could and would become a winning generation. His approach is that adopted in various democracies in recent years, most famously by New Labour in the UK and by the MLP itself in 1992-96.

It is now being exploited by 46-year-old Barack Obama, finally the Democratic Party candidate for the US presidency. Muscat's style is somewhat more brash, his self-assurance a bit too frequently pronounced. But the margin of excess will wear off and people like a leader who starts off by knowing his strengths.

If a week remains a long time in politics, the past week has represented a remarkably short time for Muscat to make his mark. He used a lot of rhetoric in the process. But his warm and homely style, mostly delivered with his wife smiling engagingly at his side, began to steal Labour hearts straightaway. Activists who had preferred another contender started taking to him immediately. It was more than politics hating a vacuum.

There was a vibrant pull quite unlike the qualities of his three predecessors.

If his impact on the Labour faithful was expected, given his charm-offensive and the hunger among them for someone who could lead them out of the morale-sapping desert, Muscat's impression on the wider population was politically more noteworthy.

People who wouldn't touch Labour with a barge pole were not put off. Adverse comments were offset by admission that Muscat spoke well. He has been spending a lot of time reaching out to Labour individuals who were shoved to the periphery of the MLP, and beyond as well. But that time has been laced with replies to questions from uncompromising journalists. Their probes gave him the opportunity to demonstrate that there is more to him than an easy smile and charisma.

Long as a week may be in politics, it is, needless to say, a mere dot in the continually unfolding picture. Muscat will have to prove his mettle over and over again far beyond the political and media stage. The real challenges will come up on two parallel fronts, within his party and in contrasting Lawrence Gonzi and his colleagues.

The MLP needs more than the earthquake as promised by the new leader. Its administrative structure has to be rebuilt. Cartoonist Steven Bonello brilliantly conveyed that point in the cartoon in this newspaper last week, depicting the MLP as a car without an engine and wheels. Rebuilding will take a lot of effort to accomplish, especially as Muscat starts off with a self-imposed handicap, in the form of individuals who should be ditched, but will remain around in his new structure.

Drawing up of new policies and re-defining carried-forward policies that deserve to be included in the new scheme of things will take longer. Muscat has done himself a favour by admitting he was mistaken in his opposition to Malta's membership of the EU. And he will do himself and the MLP a world of good by appointing people to think about and propose new policies on an ongoing basis. Whoever they are and as they change over time, they will disagree among themselves, and with others. Which, contrary to what short-sighted partisans believe, will be a critical requirement for sound policies to be drawn up.

Strong alternative policies will be essential to shape the clash and contrast which Labour has to bring about with the Nationalists as credible and effective. How Muscat will fare against Gonzi in delivering them and also in expressing Labour's stand on myriad issues in the years ahead, still remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, the new leader can conclude without brashness or undue humility that he started well. It is where he will be going that counts from now.