It is indeed a pity that the forthcoming local council elections, scheduled for April 11, have been, to a certain extent, overshadowed by the spring hunting referendum. This is certainly important but local council elections are also a crucial exercise of citizens’ democratic rights.

On reflection, one quickly realises that local government has almost as much impact on a citizen’s life as the central government, albeit in matters which are strictly related to the locality where one resides. It is therefore worthwhile to analyse the background to the forthcoming local council elections.

Let’s start with the political aspect of these elections. This has always been a controversial issue.

Some people argue that political parties should not be involved in local government while others insist that their involvement is a necessity if we want strong local government.

The involvement of political parties in local council elections seems here to stay, so the next best thing is to see how we can lessen the politicising of local councils.

I have always argued that political party candidates should do their utmost to get the best possible result for the political party they represent. However, the day they are elected they should stop seeing themselves as politicians and instead consider themselves as primarily being the representatives of all the residents of their locality.

Let me be straight about this: it’s quite a challenge to put politics aside and try to work in the best interests of the locality. While it is delightful to see local councillors working together to get the best for their locality, it is also true that some people fail to see the significance of this.

April 11 should prove to be a tough test for the two major political parties

Some narrow-minded people are even of the opinion that working with local councillors of the opposing political party is collaborating with the ‘enemy’. Thankfully, such people are a minority today but they still exert a negative influence in the locality.

Local council elections are different from parliamentary elections in that there is a greater number of people who vote across party lines.

Some people argue that their choice of votes is influenced by how much a particular candidate could contribute to the improvement of the locality as well as a that person’s integrity, education, civic commitment, etc. Such people vote for the individual and not the political party or other entity the candidate represents.

April 11 should prove to be a tough test for the two major political parties. One still has to see how voting or non-voting in the referendum will affect voting for local councils in the localities where elections are being held.

The Labour Party will indeed be the underdog because the Labour government’s philosophy of ‘Malta for All’ has still not been understood by a small number of Labour supporters.

Long years of clientelism to win votes have brought about a situation where some people see it as only natural that, under a Labour government, Labourites should be favoured in everything. This, of course, is not the case because the Labour government is not judging people according to their political opinions in the way it operates.

As a result, a minority of Labour supporters are feeling alienated from their own party in government and some have vowed to show their disapproval at the local council elections.

It remains to be seen how successful Labour will be in winning over such dissidents through a better explanation of the rationale behind the ‘Malta for All’ concept and the benefits the country will reap from it.

For the Nationalist Party, the local council elections are absolutely crucial. There are many important questions to be answered: will Simon Busuttil survive as leader of the PN in the event of another poor showing at the polls?

Is the PN too much in disarray to mount a coordinated and coherent electoral campaign? Have the vast majority of the Maltese lost faith in the PN in the wake of revelations that have come to light after the last general election?

One must also mention that, for the first time, we shall have 16-year-olds voting.

This is a laudable initiative because, today, 16-year-olds are usually more mature for their age because of the challenges of modern life. Even at such a young age, some of them have already had to make important decisions that will affect the rest of their lives.

I am totally in favour of having 16-year-olds vote at the local council elecions. I also believe that, in the near future, we should extend this to voting in national parliamentary elections, the European Parliament elections and also whenever a referendum is held.

Local government is a very important part of democracy in Malta. I urge all voters to exercise this right and, therefore, go out and vote.

We should strive to strengthen local government and the best way to do this is to send a clear message to all that the Maltese believe in local government and take a great interest in it.

A high voter turnout for the local council elections will send a strong message in this direction; a low voter turnout will indicate the direct opposite.

Desmond Zammit Marmará is a Balzan Labour councillor.