Dangers of blind protest vote
The unprecedented results of the elections in Italy, in which a large segment of the electorate has, in the face of the country’s precarious economic and financial situation, decided to vote in an anti-establishment party headed by a comedian-turned-politician with nothing positive to offer but a clean sweep of the entire existing political class, has lessons also for Malta’s electoral scenario.
Labour is clearly putting their socialist identity and programmes on hold in their drive to allure a protest vote form so-called ‘disgruntled’ Nationalists.
A number of high-profile individuals are playing up to this tune and appearing even at mass meetings to spur Nationalists to protest against the Government they have voted for over the past elections.
However, make no mistake about it, Labour are and will remain socialists and only Alice in Wonderland can ever believe that Joseph Muscat will turn out to be another Eddie Fenech Adami in his policies.
Nor should one in fact even want Muscat to ape any Nationalist Prime Minister should he and his party win at the March 9 election.
Yet, we have no idea of what socialist ideas Muscat has in plan for us, should he win.
This brings us back to Italy.
It is legitimate that Nationalist voters may wish for a change of government.
I say Nationalist voters deliberately since even at the 2008 elections a number of Nationalist voters had shown frustration at having to vote ‘again’ for the Nationalist Party to maintain Malta’s European identity and the mixed economy, which the Nationalist governments had brought with them to substitute the Mintoffian centralised economy.
Muscat cleverly is avoiding saying anything that might now prevent these voters from expressing a vote of change.
However, the country cannot afford a blind vote of protest as much as Italy cannot, albeit for different reasons.
The Maltese economy and our financial sector, not to mention the tourist industry, have all served us very well and have allowed the country to ride the ugly wave of recession, banking melt-down, which in other EU countries have led to massive EU bailouts.
Not only, instead of very costly EU bailouts, the Government’s impressive performance at the last round of EU budgetary talks has assured us of increases in EU financial support.
The electorate would really wish to understand what the real Muscat thinks outside the very carefully programmed media performances that he very competently carries out.
Only when I understand the socialist in Muscat will I make an objective assessment on the outcome of the coming election.
This is said since we do not know if a sector of the electorate will simply vote in Muscat in the belief they are voting in a better version of the Nationalist government they voted for over the past decades or so.
This is not going to happen.
Muscat must be taken seriously in the programme for progressives he started on being leader and now on the ‘conservative’ appeal he is pushing through.
However, somewhere in between there is the socialist who appeals to over 99 per cent of those who will vote for him on March 9, and this is as it should be.
These do not want another Fenech Adami, whom they could hardly stomach as head of State; neither do they want to be led by former Nationalists who voted them out of power and condemned them to decades in the Opposition.
They want a socialist government in a socialist State and this is as it should be.
Let us be clear that there is absolutely nothing illegitimate in being a socialist or having a socialist programme for Malta.
What is worrying is that the model of socialism we tasted last was the disastrous model of Dom Mintoff’s 1970s.
We would love knowing what is Muscat’s socialist economic vision for the next five years.
While the Italians felt they had not much to lose by their protest vote, we Maltese and Gozitans have, in fact, much to lose and fairness dictates we be made privy of Muscat’s socialist vision of our economy before deciding on how to vote.
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Paul Pulis
Mar 2nd, 13:25
Persons , who for the past five years have tried every means to be heard and were ignored, now have no other option but their vote to pass their message.
Willie Grech
Mar 1st, 14:40
What a load of crap!!!!!!!! No wonder the PN is in such shambles!!!!!!!!!!!
Charles Sammut
Mar 1st, 09:08
My dear fellow,I can guarantee you and your blue blinkered mates...that there won't be many "blind" votes!! People like me are going to vote PL with our eyes WIDE OPEN and with our noses covered!
We can SEE clearly the corruption and the arrogance and the ineptness of your "negotiator" and his band of parasites. We have been SMELLING the pungent stink of the "SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE" for far too long!
Victor Rodenas
Mar 1st, 08:02
In Italy they have Grillo and some years ago it was pornostar Ciccolina.Both were elected.
Edward Mallia
Feb 28th, 17:56
"While the Italians felt they did not have much to lose by their protest vote..." Pretty "good" guess, seeing they "lost" several billion euro in one day's trading plus one bond issue.The fact is that Grillo's 'troops' are already pressing him to moderate his stance to avoid a weak unstable govt. But ALG is right in saying that here most of swing to PL will be a conviction & not a protest move.
Mr ALBERT LEONE GANADO
Feb 28th, 14:56
If the people believed in an Italian type protest vote they would support the partit ta l-ajkla. However rest assured that the majority of those who will switch sides to the PL will do so because they see in the PN a worse of the same political future .JM is seen by many as a change mover who can attract voters right across the whole political spectrum. Most of us will vote PL out of conviction.
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 28th, 11:12
I just cannot understand this reasoning, So Bencini is telling us that JM's words, the LP manifesto and all the LP is saying is just simply a fraud. I know the PN acts like that but please Bencini, lets talk common sense. You are making a lot of suppositions with no grounds at all - making pure inventions just to scare people into voting PN. How desperate the PN is to fall to such levels.
John Azzopoardi
Feb 28th, 10:16
Once the election is over, the disgruntled nationalist will realize that they were taken for a ride as article above indicated, the PL socialist program will reign in. However, if that had to happen, PL will never regain footing again. They have a tough record to match as the maltese economy is not in bad shape/ unemployment is very low. Let us hope we don't become the next greece, spain, cpyrus
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 28th, 11:14
What 'Pl socialist prgarm'? Where is this? can you please quote from it? Or are you like Bencini inventing things? Scaring people shows how little the PN hasto offer to rely onin order to win votes.
Carmel J. Caruana
Feb 28th, 07:43
Dr Bencini I did not switch allegiance to protest. I did so because I believe that Labour is now better for the country.
Mr Lawrence Mifsud
Feb 28th, 05:55
This is a true picture of Malta today. In this bleak future for EU economy Malta cannot afford any setbacks due to political instability. This situation is all of the PN Govt's doing. Had GonziPN not marred its very good record of achievements for Malta, by playing foul in some of its decisions,(public transport, ARMS, etc.) voters would now have had no doubts whom to vote for.
M Portelli
Feb 27th, 22:57
Oh for goodness sake will you please stop being so patronising and face the facts,the electorate has come of age no amount of scaremongering is going to safeguard a political status quo that is very well past its sell by date.Arrogance and non action on corruption,transparency and the insensitivity of a 600 e pay-rise for the cabinet ministers while the nation is served austerity draw consequences
Joseph E Briffa
Feb 27th, 21:33
The author is right JM is trying to bury the past and trying to portray Labour as a panacea for Malta, hiding his Mintoff ministers and all the baggage they carry.He is trying to pose as the new EFA, in an attempt to lure disgruntled nationalist.Beware! Vigilance is the word; don't think for a moment that Labour has changed.It hasn't.Same old Labour dressed in a new outfit to lure the unwary.
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 28th, 11:17
One thing is for sure; GonziPN has not changed! It's still dishing out jobs to the blue eyed boys, the klikka still reigns and promises made which we already know are not going to be kept such as gay adoption -EFA has said it will not happen. Lets vote for a real change and throw out the PN klikka running the country for its own benefit. Once they are gone, we will find out the truth about GonziPN
Eddy Privitera
Feb 27th, 20:49
Austin Bencini: IT seems that the panic which has gripped Lawrence Gonzi and his incompetent lot, has finally infected you too ! When you appear on One TV you try to give the impression of an independent obserrver of the political scene. This letter shows you in your true olours - A GONZIPN HARDLINER TO BOOT !
Lawrence Fenech
Feb 27th, 20:12
Dear Dr. Austin Bencini, in my opinion you have joined the negative crowd and that you have little faith in a future labour government. Any opinion poll can confirm that it is next to impossible of a future PN repeat. Once again you have gone back to the 1970 notwithstanding the fact that EFA said that is now history and forgotten.
Please choose the reason of your report below: