I will still be there for you. It may all sound so sentimental to those who do not know me, but it is all so real a tune to those who have worked closely with me, from the time I first sat for the St Julian’s local council election to the last European Parliament elections when I was the fourth successful candidate in Labour’s winning majority.

Recent events have led to my last-minute decision to stand for the European Parliament elections next month and so end a period of uncertainty tainted with much empty media speculation.

The truth is I could never turn my back on my great support team and all those people who have, over the years, shown faith in me at local, national and European levels.

I will still be there for them.

This is mainly because my commitment to the cause of working families of Malta and Gozo is today stronger than it has ever been.

After all, at no other time have they had to endure so many challenges, nor has their need of help and support been any greater.

Trust is a two-way flow of traffic and that’s how it has to stay

My dedicated service to the people will continue to be a priority as my political career now goes into full throttle.

It is not a new situation for me. When I gave up my parliamentary seat to the new Labour leader five years ago, there were many who thought I’d had given up on being of service to my constituents.

Instead, I gladly picked up the gauntlet, was elected to the European Parliament, and eventually had the pleasure of a lot more constituents to be of service to! It is what I promise to continue doing.

I look at politics as a splendid platform on which to serve, to give and to share, rather than just an opportunity to stake some personal ambition.

This gives me the inner strength to face any new challenges that crop up in both life and career.

It also embellishes my vision of a life in politics that is genuinely interested in the progress of those working families of Malta and Gozo that need support, especially when they have had the doors of power slammed shut in their faces.

Our young men and women need us to be there for them.

The same goes for our senior citizens and the not-so-young who find it increasingly difficult to find jobs and other opportunities.

I will still be there for them, to guide them towards established and new schemes, to show them the way to new opportunities, to make sure that those doors remain open and they can stride through with confidence and optimism.

My decision to sit for the forthcoming European Parlia-ment elections is based on a belief that one can be of service to the people from whichever position or arena he or she happens to be working in.

Those critics who may have already been interpreting the developments as my bowing out to sit somewhere quiet in a secluded corner could not have been more wrong.

My service to the people has always been and will always remain unconditional.

I want to win their trust, not hoodwink them into giving it.

I want to continue working with them and for them in the safe knowledge that I have given my all and will persist in giving my all to both nation and citizen.

During the past two-and-a-half years it has been a privilege to be able to be of service at the European Union’s highest institution.

My whole political career was built on trust.

Trust is a two-way flow of traffic and that’s how it has to stay.

joseph@josephcuschieri.com

Joseph Cuschieri is head of the Labour delegation in the European Parliament

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