Electoral reform: little to show after 18 months, AD complains

Alternattiva Demokratika expressed concern today that after 18 months, the only thing agreed by the parliamentary select committee on electoral reform was to raise the spending thresholds of candidates.

Party chairman Michael Briguglio asked whether this had been done to ensure that PN and PL candidates 'who broke the law' by exceeding expenditure limits, could come off scot free.

"We augur that (Speaker) Louis Galea will not be remembered for chairing a select committee that only managed to cover up for such candidates. We strongly urge Louis Galea to ensure that before he leaves for the Court of Auditors, the electoral law is changed so that the number of votes is reflected proportionately in the number of parliamentary seats for all political parties, and not only for PL and PN, as the situation scandalously is at the moment".

A delegation from Alternattiva Demokratika headed by Mr Briguglio and included Ralph Cassar, Arnold Cassola and Carmel Cacopardo, last week met Dr Galea to discuss issues relating to the select committee (electoral reform, regulating political party financing and broadcasting) as well as Dr Galea's nomination to the EU Court of Auditors.

As regards the reform of the electoral system, AD is proposing a double threshold, with a district quota of 16.6% that would allow an individual to be elected on her/his own steam, and a national quota with a threshold of two quotas for a party to be represented in parliament.

"This system is similar to that of highly developed democracies such as Germany. 'AD is proposing a fair balance between democratic representation of voters and functional governance. We are for true proportional representation for all citizens, where each and every vote counts the same. Unlike PN and PL which work as a duopoly that excludes others from the electoral process, AD is putting forward responsible proposals', added Mr Briguglio.