I don't know about you but I was not in the least surprised to learn that Lawrence Gonzi voted against the divorce bill. Why anyone expected any different from the man is beyond me.
I'm sure that his advisors tried their best to drum some sense into him, but let's face it, you don't get to be the leader of the most conservative and confessional party on the island by letting rational advisors or the electorate change your mind.
The truth is that had Lawrence Gonzi not been more loyal to Catholicism than towards his electorate, he wouldn't have been hand-picked to fill Eddie Fenech Adami's shoes.
But that's history - that's what got Gonzi to where he is now; where his 'No' vote is going to take him from here on, is a whole other story.
Some are saying that Gonzi's 'No' will cost the PN the next election. I personally thought that putting the whole divorce decision up to a public referendum was already suicidal enough, but despite the cries for democracy today, despite the chants for civil rights now, despite the open disgust at this point in time, if history is anything to go by, we can expect voters to get all sorts of mood swings, changes of heart, and attractive job offers in the run up to the next election, so really and truly, there's absolutely no way of knowing which way the election will sway.
The only sure thing is that Gonzi's decision to vote against the divorce bill, whilst at the same time ensuring that it goes through, means that our dear Prime Minister not only believes in heaven and hell, but is also into making useless symbolic gestures.
In real life, the only symbolic gesture that makes a tad of a difference is the infamous one finger salute, and only if used in the right context with the appropriate lighting; every other symbol is rather useless, especially if it might cost you your Government!
And before any staunch and blinded nationalist bursts with pride because their Gonzi 'didn't waiver under populist pressure", I suggest they think again. If they honestly and truly think that a Labour government would spell disaster for our country, then they should be angry as hell that their Prime Minister is seriously risking handing over the leadership to what they consider to be losers from another planet. And for what? For a petty symbolic gesture!
Surely, a real symbol of courage would have been that of voting 'yes' and possibly facing individual damnation, rather than risking having to hand Malta over to what he says would be a totally ruinous Government.
info@alisonbezzina.com