The Nationalist Party is going through a generational change. And this is not just about a change in people but also about a change in the party’s structures and organisation.

The Nationalist Party must fully understand the society in which it operates

Following my election at the head of the party two weeks ago, the new leadership team of the party will be completed in the coming days with the election of the two new deputy leaders.

Mario de Marco will be contesting for the post of deputy leader for parliamentary affairs whereas Beppe Fenech Adami and Claudette Buttigieg will be contesting for the post of deputy leader for party affairs. A two-thirds majority is required for election. The first round will take place this Saturday. I wish all contestants well. They are all qualified for the post and the party will stand to gain from their involvement.

At the same time, another two elections will be taking place. The first is for the presidency of the party’s General Council. The incumbent, Paula Mifsud Bonnici, will go head-to-head with Louis Bonnici who presides over our Naxxar sectional committee.

The second one is to elect 13 new members to sit on the party’s Executive Committee. For this election, there is a highly competitive list topping 40 candidates - a tribute, if any was needed, to the keen interest being shown in the party’s future.

Once the Executive Committee is formed, new elections will take place for the rest of the party’s top brass, ranging from the crucial post of secretary general to that of the president of the party’s Administrative Council.

In brief, in a matter of two weeks, the new party administration will be in place. I look forward to getting down to work with the new team.

Meanwhile, the work has already started on other avenues.

One of the objectives that I mentioned in my first speech as party leader was the setting up of a commission to review the party’s statute. Only yesterday, I announced the establishment of this commission, which will be chaired by my colleague, Francis Zammit Dimech.

The commission will have the task of compiling a set of possible amendments to the statute following a thorough consultation process with the party grassroots. The aim is to update the party structures and organisation with a view to making it a better organised, more open and more inclusive party that is able to reach out and connect effectively with the people in a 21st century society.

The commission has been asked to submit its final report before the summer break so that the necessary changes can then be discussed and adopted during the month of September.

I have also announced the establishment of a committee within the PN parliamentary group that will focus on issues related to the south.

It is no secret that the party has lost significant support in this part of the country. Suffice it to say that out of a total of 20 parliamentary seats elected from the second, third, fourth and fifth electoral districts, last March Labour scooped up as many as 16 seats, leaving us with just four.

Another two Nationalist MPs were later elected as a result of the casual election and the Constitutional amendment to ensure proportionality. Even so, however, the Labour Party still enjoys a majority of 10 seats in just four districts. That, on its own, is more than the nine-seat majority that Labour enjoys in Parliament.

This state of play points to a structural problem in the party’s ability to connect in the south and this is something that needs to be addressed, sooner rather than later. This is why I have asked our MPs hailing from these four districts to set up an ad hoc committee, under the chairmanship of Stephen Spiteri, to come up with concrete ways of addressing this serious imbalance.

In the coming days, I will be taking other initiatives to put the party on a steady course towards a renewal and reorganisation.

I will also take the necessary steps to start looking into and addressing the party’s financial and commercial interests.

Another commission will be set up and tasked to study Maltese society in order to enable the party to fully understand the society in which it operates and, therefore, ensure that we are fully in synch with the needs and challenges of the people today.

Another commission will be set up with the responsibility of selecting party candidates and overseeing rigorous behaviour and discipline among party representatives.

I will also take the first steps towards establishing a forum that will bring together all unelected party candidates along with former party MPs, all of whom are important cohorts for the party in view of their energy, expertise and experience. It is my hope that this forum can be eventually transformed into a statutory college on a permanent basis.

This is just a taste of what is in store. But there is more.

If you want to play your part to return the party to its former glory and help transform it into the party of the future, this is my message to you: come in, we’re open.

Simon Busuttil is leader of the Nationalist Party.