In just over a year he has gone from contesting the post of Labour Party leader to becoming the President of the Republic. George Abela talks about his new role.

Whether as a lawyer for Malta's largest trade union or as president of the Malta Football Association or the deputy leader of the Labour Party, you have occupied public roles where your actions served to change things. The Presidency is largely a ceremonial role with little if no influence. Will you fit the bill?

I don't agree with you that the President has an ineffectual role. Of course, there is the ceremonial part, which serves its function. However, the Presidency is and should be relevant, especially in today's times.

People have different opinions, beliefs, even sporting affiliations and the President needs to represent this diversity in the country. My prime responsibility will be to represent unity in diversity. I hope in God that it will be an effective and relevant Presidency.

There is also the ceremonial part because the President needs to host dignitaries and be present in functions. However, even this is important since the President needs to keep in touch with the people. I don't want to be cut off from the people.

It is important for the President to know what people are feeling so that when the occasion arises for the President, during meetings with the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, he would be able to put forward his suggestions in the people's best interest.

The Presidency has almost always been a way of kicking politicians upstairs. Some of your predecessors are known to have privately expressed their dismay at being appointed to the post. Do you believe Lawrence Gonzi and Joseph Muscat had the intention of getting rid of you from the active political scene by nominating you to the Presidency?

You will have to ask that question to Dr Gonzi and Dr Muscat. I can only speak for myself. However, I saw this as an opportunity handed to me by the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader, not only on a personal level to continue contributing to the benefit of this country but, more importantly, for the people.

It is important even for the media to give due significance to this opportunity, which was created after almost 35 years. This is the first time that the President of the Republic was appointed by unanimous agreement between all the members of Parliament that were present for the vote. Not only that, the innovative aspect is that a government nominated a President from a different political camp. We need to give this opportunity a chance to grow and we must not nip it in the bud. I will nurture it and I am sure that I will have the support of the media. I already have the support of the public because that is what they have long been waiting for.

In an interview last year you said: "I was never anybody's puppet and will never be, more so at my age. I always spoke my mind". Will George Abela the President continue to speak his mind?

As President I will continue saying what is on my mind but in silence. The emphasis is silence. The Presidency cannot and must not enter into controversies, be they social or political. There is the right forum where that controversy can take place. The President is there to represent all sectors of society and so he cannot tip in favour of a particular position, otherwise he would have prejudiced the issue.

The President needs to be aloof from the discussion that needs to happen in a democracy so as not to influence its outcome with his personal opinion.

What values will you bring to the Presidency?

I will bring to the Presidency the same values nurtured by my predecessors. My Presidency may have a particular mark because of my previous involvement in sports and philanthropy. I will certainly put my energy into these sectors and others such as persons with disability. I will bring to the fore the important human values that are inherent in sports. It is a Presidency that requires its time. I don't want to be hasty. I still have to take my oath of office tomorrow.

However, I have used these days to reflect and consult with the previous Presidents.

What advice have they given you?

To be prudent and to remain true to myself. This was also the advice I was given by my family. People know me as I am with my good and bad sides. This is the way I was chosen and this is the way people are greeting me with joy. It is important for me not to change in this regard.

You were a member of the Electoral Commission during the turbulent 1980s. Do you have any regrets from that period?

Again, you are trying to drag me into a controversy and I asked you to realise that a President cannot be controversial. They were times when I was actively involved in the public sphere...

I am asking you because there are people still suffering from the wounds that were inflicted during that period, not necessarily by yourself but by the circumstances that developed. Do you feel that your Presidency is one way of healing those wounds?

Certainly, but on a more general level I was an active person and an active person makes mistakes. I do not hesitate to apologise to whoever I may have hurt with my actions in the various roles I occupied throughout my career. However, from now onwards I cannot enter into any controversy. I have to represent one nation that has different ideas, one people that has different political and religious beliefs and so I want people to see in me the new George Abela. The George Abela of yesterday and the George Abela of today are different in this respect.

The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition have both called for the start of a debate to have one National Day. Will we ever arrive at a point when we will celebrate one National Day?

I will not enter into the merit of issues that have still to be debated. It is not a President's role to talk about issues especially when they are still in the early stages of a debate. My wish is to see one National Day but we need to allow the space for the debate to happen in the right fora.

Do you believe Dr Gonzi and Dr Muscat are genuine in their demands?

What I think, my opinion, does not feature into the issue.

In the same interview last year you admitted of being a good friend of Lawrence Gonzi but politically you never saw eye to eye with him. How will the political relationship between you and the Prime Minister be?

On an interpersonal level I have a good relationship with both Dr Gonzi and Dr Muscat and even with all those who know me. I am confident, and Dr Gonzi said this in Parliament, that I will find all the backing possible from him.

I will refer you back to your statements last year, which I think serve as an opportunity to help us understand what values you will bring to the Presidency. You had said that Malta was not a confessional state and that it was important for the different relationships, mostly non-traditional, that developed in society be safeguarded. Will these families find solace in your Presidency?

I ask you to listen to my short speech tomorrow, which will reflect what the new President feels and believes.

As President would you sign a law introducing divorce?

I will not enter into controversies. We need to allow the debate to happen and then one will see.

Illegal immigration is a top concern for the people. You went on record last year stating that the detention period was too long and it should be reduced. This statement will not make you popular with the people. Will this issue be problematic for you?

I do not agree with you that it makes me unpopular. I have been greeted very well by the people. Even so I am not after popularity. George Abela as President will not enter into controversies. I will not enter into a discussion on issues being debated in the country because it is not within my competence to do so and I ask you to appreciate this.

However, in your silence will you be touching upon these issues with the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition?

In my silence when I speak with whom I need to speak I will remain close to all the situations and issues being debated in the country as I am obliged to do. I will also be asking about them as well.

Were you surprised that Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, Simon Busuttil, George Vella and Alfred Sant objected to your nomination?

If there were other people outside Parliament who spoke against the nomination I do not know. However, I respect their decision. The Constitution makes it amply clear that Parliament is made up of the President and the House of Representatives and I need to respect that decision.

In five years' time what do you wish people to be saying of the George Abela Presidency?

I wish them to say what they have always said at the end of term of every Presidency that came before me. In the speeches delivered in Parliament last Wednesday both sides of the House held the outgoing President in high regard for having given the Presidency the stature it deserves. I also add to that the yearning to create a sense of state.

What was your family's reaction when you were asked to become President?

Despite the fact that my name and that of others were doing the rounds, I was still surprised by the nomination. As a family we had to reflect carefully because the role does change your daily routine. The routine did not change now that the parliamentary motion was approved but it changed the moment my name was made public. From the morrow I stopped going to court, which was an enormous change for me after 33 years of earning a living over there. I felt I had to do this because as President I preside over the Commission for the Administration of Justice, which oversees the judiciary. In no way did I want to appear in front of a judge or a magistrate and make them feel uncomfortable.

This was a major change for me and in the subsequent weeks I gradually transferred all my clients to my son and his wife, who are also lawyers.

Will you be living at San Anton?

Yes. We are not used to this style of life but one of the first family decisions we took was to go and live in San Anton. From time to time we would need to host foreign dignitaries in our home and when we host people in this way we first have to feel at home ourselves. It is important to showcase our hospitality since it is part of our identity as a nation.

This is possibly part of the ceremonial aspect but it is also the thing foreign dignitaries will take with them and I hope that my wife and I will be able to transmit this feeling of hospitality to our guests.

Watch the interview on www.timesofmalta.com.