A party of generational change

In its latest general council, the Nationalist Party brought together the economy and solidarity as the two sides of the same coin. Bix-xogħol insaħħu s-solidarjetà (strengthening solidarity through job creation) is the theme launched by the PN as our new slogan for political action in the coming weeks, built on the former message Fix-Xogħol is-Sigurtà (a reassuring economy).

During the same council, the PN mapped out a concrete plan of action at organisational level geared at repositioning the party through dialogue at grassroot level and beyond party affiliation, evolving from a network of communication (xibka ta' komunikazzjoni) to a network of participation (xibka ta' parteċipazzjoni).

At the end of 2008, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi determinedly said that "2009 will bring with it great challenges for our country. Malta must emerge stronger". Amid the worst international financial crisis since 1929, banks and financial institutions were crippled or collapsed, unemployment soared and the tremors of the world economy spiked high on the market Richter scale.

Patience, perseverance, focus and trust in change were the ingredients that led the Prime Minister and the country to collectively firmly face the challenges that came our way and overcome them.

Responsible governance, timely decisive measures and a strong vision for an innovative economy, guided by a strong set of values, are a stark difference to the irrational, foot-stamping-politics attributable to the Leader of the Opposition and his team, the most recent case being the shipyard reform.

A generation ago, few would have ever thought that the shipyard reform would happen. Workers and the yards were supported in the dwindling hope of a sustainable recovery. For decades, the shipyards were perceived to be more of a politically-organised institution than an economically-motivated enterprise. Yet, the recent rhetoric coming from the opposition benches in Parliament was nothing more than a passionate cry of political nostalgia and a weak attempt to rally the troops in remembrance of a wrecked enterprise. Backward-looking and militant Labour could do no better.

In contrast to this characteristic political short-sightedness of the Labour Party there is the political vision of the PN marked by the determined and resilient leadership of the Prime Minister to bring change to Maltese industry through collective action and participation, engineering the privatisation of the shipyard, repositioning it into a productive industry without ever losing focus of the real interests of the workers.

The shipyard reform is just one example of a vision signalled by time. In November 2009, during the financial crisis mentioned earlier, the country strengthened its building block for our new, modern and growing economy. Malta's commercial acumen in maritime affairs led us to expand further into aviation. Determined to build on the success of our maritime industry and ship registration we are steadily moving into aircraft registration and jet yards.

In 2007, Dr Gonzi launched Vision 2015. This vision is a beacon for our economy to reach its full potential in sectors where we have a relative advantage, as witnessed in the reforms in transport, ICT, health, tourism, the environment, education and the economy.

The PN has been capable of overcoming the challenges that the country faced. It has been a catalyst for riding the wave of opportunities brought about by economic reform. As we boldly faced the challenges, we overcame resistance in the strong belief that, though change is never easy, it is always possible. These are the challenges that will keep leading us to collective success as a people, as a nation and as an economy.

Three years later, the Prime Minister is now taking this vision of the PN beyond its borders and into Vision 2015plus. It is a process calling for open dialogue beyond party affiliation that will look into what we have built so far on the pillars of the 3Es - economy, education and environment - and delving deeper into those issues that will bring us together to shape our next generation today: identity, innovation and inclusion.

This weekend, the PN will be setting the pace for an open dialogue calling upon collective capabilities towards Vision 2015+. It is this magnified vision that makes the PN the party of generational change without leading to a generational gap.

Dr Borg Olivier is general secretary of the Nationalist Party