The Trump victory will be subject to a great deal of analysis. It should allow politicians, including our own to find a quiet moment and reflect. The US electorate had a very clear choice. Political elite vs business billionaire and showman, political stability vs risk all for change. We all now know what the US voters chose.
Trump himself wanted to replicate Brexit, where the British voted for the unknown as long as it was a change from what they had. Trump identified a massive political opportunity by touching a large part of the electorate who feelforgotten by the whole political system and administration.
They are wooed at polling day, but forgotten for the rest of the term.
Malta has its own forgotten. Recently I accompanied a relative to the Accident and Emergency Department at Mater Dei Hospital. We were there for seven hours and the actual treatment took no more than an hour. The rest was spent in the waiting room and hospital corridors until she was taken to a ward. When she was informed that she could leave the hospital, she was advised to wait for some papers. Three hours later the papers had still not arrived and we left without them.
Politicians in Malta should strive for the change the people crave for so much. No need for a grand revolution, but attention to detail is needed
As a litigation lawyer, I also know that it is a nightmare for those seeking justice. Cases take too long. I have had clients, who actually forgot why they went to court in the first place and I have also had cases where the next generation inherits a case.
As a former Nationalist Party general election candidate, I saw that our offices were used as job centres for those seeking favour in finding jobs with the government or government entities. The prize job in my district was one at the Malta Freeport.
I have seen countless social housing applicants, who applied when they had a new born baby, only for that child to grow up to a school leaver and still be without a secure home. This means that in their childhood they would have lived with their grandparents, or else moved home from one of their mother’s partner to another.
For many people the system takes too long and does not work. In the last general election I found this sentiment in one household after another. People wanted a change and they voted for it. The question is whether they got it.
In the US and the UK, will they get it? Some described what happened in the US and in the UK as revolutions, however, history warns us to be weary of revolutions. As the French can attest, they beheaded a king only to crown an emperor.
From my perspective, that forgotten segment of the Maltese electorate still feels forgotten. It seems that the government is more concerned with grand projects such as building a new power station, skyscrapers, selling off hospitals and attracting billionaires to become fellow citizens.
The people in the hospital waiting rooms, the parties in lawsuits, job seekers and social housing applicants feel that there is nothing for them once these grand projects realise themselves. They will be in the same rut. In fact, the political wrangling between the major political parties is more of a distraction from their mundane lives.
I believe that politicians in Malta should strive for the change these people crave for so much. No need for a grand revolution, but attention to detail is needed to make the difference. As a former PN official and candidate, I hope that the party can inspire this change for the forgotten numbers and make the system we invest so much in work for them too.
Malcolm Mifsud is a former Nationalist Party official, mayor and candidate.