Wednesday, 30th April 2008
MACHINATIONS
I don't imagine anyone is under any illusion that I think that George Abela is the right choice for the leadership of the MLP. Contrary to what Labour's Little Elves think, this is not because Abela being leader would favour the Nationalists.
According to the Elves' logic, if we ("we" being the columnists who the Elves are convinced are part of the PN-sponsored conspiracy to keep Labour out of government) prefer Abela, then Abela must be wrong. These people, sadly for them, don't seem be able to comprehend that I (I'll speak for myself only, the other columnists are quite capable of sticking up for themselves) don't view the prospect of Labour being elected with horror.
Labour under a decent leadership would be just as good for the country as the PN has been for the last couple of decades, Sant's blip-in-power aside.
The problem is, Labour hasn't convinced the country that it had a decent enough leadership to gain (and maintain) power for more than a couple of decades now.
While I don't have blind faith in the judgement of the massed ranks of the great unwashed, I have to accept that the relevant majority can't have been wrong every time it voted to defeat the MLP. And that ignores the objective evidence that's been in front of my baby blues for the last 30 years or so, which has proved to me beyond reasonable doubt that Mintoff, KMB and Sant, individually and as the embodiment of the Malta Labour Party, were not fit to lead the country.
If you want to have a look at the evidence for this indictment of the first two on that mercifully short list, read John Manduca's book, as I suggested in my Saturday column. If you want evidence on Sant, just think back a few months to the campaign and analyse, even superficially, the mess he made of that.
But my distaste for Labour as served up to us by these people does not translate to my ignoring, or even being mildly worried about, the fact that there's no reason why Labour shouldn't be in power some day. And this being a given, it is equally a given that I want the best possible leader to be in place when they are.
This is not to say that my views on George Abela being the best man for the job are shared by the other candidates or, more relevantly, by the MLP administration. It's perfectly understandable, of course, that the other candidates think they're better (they're in it to win it after all) but what's becoming fun for the rest of us is watching the dirty tricksters who are starting to raise their heads above the parapet.
It all started with Jason Micallef (to whose name, with any luck, we'll start adding "remember him?" the way we'll soon start with Sant's) jerking his knee at the mention of Abela on Xarabank. It was clear, if anything was ever clear, that Micallef didn't feel anything like unbounded joy at the idea of Abela becoming his boss, even for a few minutes.
So as soon as Abela suggested that, just maybe, it mightn't be such a bad idea if the power to elect a leader were to be devolved away from the party "elite" (a word used somewhat loosely just then, I admit) the machine went into block mode.
Straight out, the media ban was put into place by the commissars charged with ensuring that the leadership contest was "fair". That piece of mild insanity was soon reversed, when someone bothered to think the thing through, but not before the damage to the machine's image was done.
No wonder so many people don't like the idea of them in government. Which is all a pretty convoluted way, on my part, of coming to the point. What the heck was Mintoff doing at George Abela's public meeting last week?
There are only two explanations, really. Either Abela thinks being associated with Mintoff will get him the votes he needs to be elected or someone else thinks the opposite.
At first blush, I thought that the latter was more likely: someone thought it might be a good wheeze to foist Dom onto Abela, to ruin his image. A bit of judicious sabotage never did anyone any harm, after all, except for the person who is being sabotaged. Ask Lino Spiteri.
But then I tried to think this through a touch further. It's by no means a given that anyone but the party delegates is going to be admitted to the hallowed chamber to cast his or her vote on the question as to who is the best leader for the MLP. This being the case, and the delegates not being - how can one put this? - your average floating voter (hardliner Labourite, more like) it is not inconceivable that a less shallow consideration would lead to the thought that being associated with Mintoff would do a candidate no harm at all. Quite the contrary, maybe.
Perhaps Mintoff turning up, then, wasn't a dirty trick designed to scupper Abela but an exercise in real politik by the guy, a wooing of the voters, if you like. After all, Abela isn't a wide-eyed innocent relying on his boyish good looks but a politician just like the rest of them, albeit one who falls squarely on the positive side of the equation.
Whether being associated with Mintoff will be beneficial to Abela in the long run (that is, if and when he becomes Prime Minister in Waiting) is debatable - in politics, the short term is way more important than the long term and the short term requires, from Abela's point of view, that the delegates see him as a staunch Labourite.
That was one theory.
Then of course there's another. A deeper analysis of the whole affair actually leads the more thoughtful analyst towards the notion that planting Mintoff in Abela's domain was more akin to a cunning plan on the part of someone unknown who wouldn't want Abela to prevail.
Don't forget, the delegates in place are, more likely than not, the sort of people who are less than unsympathetic to the Sant camp - the very camp, mark you, that was sacked and desecrated by Mintoff when, in what many classified as a lucid moment, he stood up to Sant and brought down his government. If you were to stick a gun to my head and demand that I come out with it, I'd have to say that I don't believe that George Abela is dumb enough to risk being associated with Mintoff.
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Comments
agreed. And thank you for the nice comment. This is more my line of commenting. i enjoy so much finding things we agree upon first, then looking at our differences and then ending with the agreed things again.
So, anytime you are here, contact me through Charles......sincerely hoping not professionally, unless "in extremis". Enjoy life my friend and God bless Canada and Malta!
Oh yes Joseph - you are absolutely right. Scrolling up and down can easily screw things up and the Simon bit was indeed your compliment to Charles. I apologize for the error.
Having said that, this whole issue started when you accused me of 'attacking your integrity'. You know very well that I did not and never intended to. If I am having a 'senior moment' ( also known here as a 'blonde moment' forgive me but I cannot imagine what prompted you to feel that your (personal) integrity was in question. Besides, as you pointed out the dates in question do not coincide.
I know of many people who reluctantly took up positions simply because Mr. Mintoff said so. That does not mean that they lacked integrity, either!
In any case, as Charles pointed out more than once, you are a fine doctor and I would make a good patient - medically and temperamentally. We are both doing our health no good spending so much time in front of this confounded gadget. Don't you agree?
Your last suggestion is quite interesting from several aspects. One - if my dementia has not advanced too much, I believe that there is a saying which goes something like 'Politics makes strange bed fellows? (with minor modifications) Two - since you and Charles are such good friends, I would expect him to join us for drinks. Three - since Charles already owes me a drink (I hope he remembers), I would look forward to collecting on my bet. Four - since I partake very little alcohol, my tab will be reasonable and Five- we can prove that in this day and age bitterness about the past is passé but should not prevent us from ribbing each other - it could be fun.
I cannot close this without making reference to Karin Grech. I agree - it is a blemish and justice seems to have eluded us just as much as in other unsolved cases including the Raymond Caruana case.
In either case, we have one assurance that if justice is not meted out in this world, it is certainly hoped that it will be served in the next.
Just a little correction. Charles Buttigieg did NOT call me Simon the Cyrene. I called HIM that because he tried to extend a little help when he thought I needed it. I carried no special crosses. i just did what I thought was my duty. i could have done like some and took one of the wonderful offers proposed to me in Dubai or Saudi Arabia.....or came back to Canada. But my conscience told me otherwise. My fellow countrymen needed help and that's what I did......helped them.
I did NOT find the label of "martyr" objectionable. What I found objectionable is you saying that I was PLAYING a part of whatever. That is unfair.......and so are labels of any sort, even more when they do not represent truly the person. I do not expect apologies either. Once damage is done, if it is done, it is too late for apologies. 'Look before you leap' is a better way of life. And I look at the context of all the comments, not just yours.
And, to make things even clearer, I was the first doctor to break the strike in 1977 and restarted hospital work after 3 days, to the joy of many. If you are in Malta, and you wish to contact me, i would be very much willing to narrate to you the real and honest history of the most infamous of political strikes, a consequence of which, directly or indirectly, was the massacre of a young girl, Karen Grech. That shall always remain a blemish in our country's history, never to be forgotten I hope. Bring anybody with you. We could all enjoy a drink together.
You find the label of 'martyr' objectionable, but let's face it, are you not overplaying it a bit too much?
You tell me where I questioned your integrity and I will apologize, but you will have a hard time finding anything of the sort. maybe you did not like one sentence?: 'Of course, he found a faithful servant to run the affairs at St. Luke's.' I mentioned no names.
You stated that you were Supt. of St. Luke's five years after the doctors strike - so why the guilt trip? You were never the target - Dom Mintoff was.
Your friend Charles called you Simon the Cyrene, I suppose for him relieving Jesus from the burden of the cross.
If you accept that title, then I have to congratulate and thank you for carrying the cross of our nation so callously imposed by Mr. Mintoff, prior to your tenure of Superintendent at St. Lukes.
I too was having fun commenting and disagreeing with various points of view, but I am not so sure now especially when someone takes comments personally when his name was not mentioned even once!
The way you ended your comment speaks for itself. Again why do you say that I played the martyr? I play and never played anything in life, let alone the martyr. Telling someone he is playing something he is not is degrading in itself. I am outspoken and speak what I feel without labelling anybody. By that ending you have, indirectly, said I am trying to be something I am not. And there is a not-so-nice name for such people. Sarcasm, although I appreciate it, is not my line in commenting, although I love to use it when in company of friends where we know each other well. Titles too are not in my line. But this your last comment was not the first time you titled me. You knew I was a Dr, because you had titled me before. See for yourself, although I give you the doubt that it could have been sarcasm or lapsus from your side. The less labels used the better. By becoming personal they only shatter the fun of commenting and disagreeing. Besides causing division, they are also impolite.
@Joe Vella
I shall give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you did not know that, up till now, there has always been and there is only one (1) Dr. Joseph Grech-Attard in Malta. But, again, it is hard to swallow! Joe Vella is common, especially here where I come from in Mellieha, it being one of the most common names. You are lucky. You can write what you want. Nobody could be aware of who you are. But, please, I hope you do not take advantage of it.
Can any one of you Gentleman where in my post, I spoke of any bad ILL about Dr. Joseph Grech-Attatd. I am simply pointing out that at one time there was an MD, as head at St. Lukes, baring the same name.
As if, I am only the Joe Vella that exist in Malta?
As I already wrote, I never mentioned your name anywhere. If you read ALL my previous postings you will find that it never as much as dawned on me that you were a doctor let alone the CAO of St. Lukes at the specified time, otherwise I would have titled you properly as I am doing now.
The 'faithful servant' I referred to, whose name still escapes me, was one who was willing to serve while his/her fellow doctors were denied their rights and who chose to leave medical care to foreigners who could not speak English properly let alone Maltese.
Even if I referred to the person in question as 'faithful servant, I certainly did not question his abilities or dedication, so, why you went to such defensive statements is beyond me.
Your integrity, as you describe it, was never the issue. Mintoff's policies were.
If you and Charles wanted to comment fairly, why did you ignore the rest of my posting but picked on one example, which I had chosen at random, in order to play martyrs?
You are right. I was medical Suptd at St. Luke's Hospital from 1982 (5 years after the doctors' strike) till 1986 BUT I did not have the job because I was faithful to Dom Mintoff. That's very wicked for you to suggest. Nothing political was up my sleeves although, of course, I was and still am an MLP supporter and also a Mintoffjan! The CGMO and PMO's in those days also kept their posts and I can assure you none of them did it out of faithfullness to Mintoff. And we all worked so well together that we started things that in those days were only in the dreams of most of the medical and para-medical profession, including the initiation of local courses in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, radiographers, ECG technicians, laboratory technicians, health assistans, CCU, first kidney transplant, renal dialysis, CT scan, and making it possible for studies in our hospital to be recognised by foreign universities including German and Belgian ones, thanks also to Profs Edwin Grech whose daughter was massacred and the cuplrit never caught. And all this, and more, despite all the opposition coming from all quarters. I did my duty to the best of my abilities, without ever even dreaming of political partisanship. Was that that out of faithfulness to Mintoff? I helped and worked with lots of my colleagues, regardless of their political thoughts, Dr. Michael Gonzi, MP, brother of our present prime minister, being one of them. In the early 90's, during PN administration, i was offered the same job again by the then PN minister of health, which I had to refuse because I was too committed with my private practice, which, thank God, flourished.
So why do you try to, cunningly and indirectly, defame my integrity and my dignity, as a person and as a doctor? Don't you both think that it is as shameful, at least, as Mintoff deposing Pardo? Can you please stick to arguments and stop once and for all this shameful business of putting doubts into people's heads about the diginity of any human being? I am sure that, if one were to probe well into your past and/or present, one could find things to talk about thus fulfilling the "eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" but my socialist, Catholic principles refrain me from doing so. He who is without fault cast the first stone. I repeat, boldly and without any shame at all, that I am an MLP supporter and a Mintoffjan as much as I am socialist and Catholic, with all the faults that come with each and every one of them. But no one, including and especially yourselves, without any proof whatsoever, have the right to question my integrity.
@Charles Buttigieg
Thank yoiu Charles for being Simon the Cyrene. May God be with us all and protect us from wickedness.
If (and I had forgotten) Dr. Joseph Grech-Attard was the 'faithful servant' I mentioned, I made no reference to his ability to do the job. I only stated the truth about the difficulty the patients had in communicating with foreign doctors some claiming that wrong diagnosis was common because of faulty communications, while Maltese doctors chose to leave and start a new career in England and elsewhere, thanks to Dom's stubbornness.
I don't know what 'mud' you are complaining about!
If you have any criticism for Dr.Grech- Attard's former management, be specific about them. Just in case you do not know, this man is a highly respected MD and rates amongst the best anlysists we have in Malta. His immediate diagnosis of a medical problem saved my life. You may rest assured that when Joseph was managing St.Luke's he was doing a favour to the Maltese community and not vice versa. But like me he supports Labour which gives you a divine right to sling mud at him. Shame on the pair of you for being personal.
What a coincidence?
For those who are shallow enough and not able to understand George Borg Olivier's thinking, let us (for an instant) rewrite part of history.
Let us assume that Mintoff won the elections of 1962. Knowing him, he would have opted for an Independent Republic, possibly outside the Commonwealth. The British forces would have left immediately relieving Britain of any responsibility regarding the defence of the Island and certainly any economic help would have been minimal if any at all. Remember, that was a time of the Cold War being at its peak.
So, in that scenario, Mintoff and Malta would have been cast adrift with no economic means of survival since overnight, it would have shed any means of help.
GBO was wiser than that and preferred some kind of guarantee both for defence and in economic terms. When the question of becoming a Republic came up, he was still of the opinion that another period of ten years agreement with Britain was still advisable. He was right because between 1974 and 1987 Mintoff found it tough and caused us all to tighten up our belt so much that we had to punch new holes. Bulk buying came in and controlled our diets too! He quarrelled with just about everyone who dared ask for a little more. He quarrelled with the doctors, among others, and imported Chinese and Polish doctors whose patients found it impossible to understand or be understood. Of course, he found a faithful servant to run the affairs at St. Luke's.
By the end of Dom and his successor's term, the island was left in a shambles. Some money in the kitty all right but crumbling infrastructure, no water, no jobs etc.
The latter part is certainly not rewritten history.
As I said when Gonzipners are beaten on the grounds of logic they resort to.......
When Labour was in government I used to have a hell of a time trying to justify some of its wrong doings,I never said Labour was perfect, most times I used to fall flat on my face. That's exactly what is happening here to the Terinupners oppps sorry Mistragatepners. I really enjoy this game, keep hitting us and remind us of our past,attack was always the best form of defence but you lot are failing miserably. Do I detect a hint of fear between your lines?
At this time Labour is giving you a lesson on democracy,self criticism,open debates, spirit of competition and during this positive process you are seeing us a fragmented party,which proves my point.
We shall soon have a brand new leader and the very thought that we shall soon be celebrating the envy of Maltese politicians has put you all in a panic.
We shall be as democratic as the Jpopn had ever been,the period 1981-87 style of opposition shall,hopefully, be used as a blue print.
Have we all forgotten that a certain party tried to integrate us with "Religio e Patria?"
I suggest you revisit our recent political history, it would meet you as a surprise to find out that George Borg-Olivier and five other PN members of parliament voted against the Republican Constitution. Do you condone that? Do you expect me to laud Mintoff for his actions after 1998? Is that what you expect from a free thinker? Sure I am a red hot Labourite but I also have tons of self esteem to call a spade a spade,and that is also the main reason which never allowed me to support Terinupn.
Mintoff was such a nationalist that he was willing to give our nationhood away and integrate us with Britain!
Then, of course, in typical MLP fashion he made a U-turn and hopped on the indepandence wagon!
Three cheers for the principled Dom!
I'm quite surprised you are saying that. Well maybe you should re-read your first 6 paragraphs. Their underpinning is clearly that we (us socialists - gosh no, that makes me feel old, left-off-center is best but I know you really mean Santisti) do not believe the likes of yourself are genuine when you say G.A. is the best choice for MLP, yes?
If the above is true then; would that not be justification if there ever was one?
Consider me a Santist for this arguments sake, I would (me being me) have no objection with you blasting Sant with all your scribblers might until the new party leader, who may turn out be to your liking. Unfortunately this is the bit that leaves me with a bit of a bad taste. For all your justification as to why you think G.A. would be digestible and to your most refined palate, you have not really specified whether you would actually consider voting for him.
Well, what am I thinking!!!?!!! God forbid a pro-capitalist vote for a socialist party!!!?!!! hmmm ... well by his own claim he did vote for the nationalionalist party that still taxes heavily and maintains the same welfare system and the same number of government employees ... gosh what would a harvard graduate really do with that? Still PN represents somehow free market economy, they did open the chocolate market.
Like I said, we have really come far on the rock. So far that now Thesus has gotten quite tangled in it.
Malta became a Republic during Mintoff's government. This needed a 2/3 majority which he got through convincing EFA who had just toppled GBO. GBO's and his followers did NOT vote for the republic. That is not rewriting history. It is history. Pardo's removal was of a political nature. I remember also Mintoff honouring a MALTESE person as first Maltese governor-general and first Maltese president - the late Sir Anthony Mamo, God bless his soul. Well done Mintoff! Shame on those who, after 1964, left Malta in the hands of the foreigner. Sir Anthony could have been made governor-general at that time!
@Martinelli
What's wrong in having 2 MLP supporters not agreeing about something or someone, including Dom MIntoff? Isn't that healthy? Doesn't it happen in ALL parties? Let us hope it remains like that.. We agree to disagree and shall continue to do so. But when it comes to socialist principles no! We then carry the same opinions. And, by the way, I am not MILDLY slanted towards the MLP. I am a full supporter. What about you? You give me the impression you are more anti-MLP and its supporters rather than pro-somebody else.
You said that "don't believe that George Abela is dumb enough to risk being associated with Mintoff" and you postulate a theory that Mr. Mintoff may have been planted or that Mintoff was foisted "onto Abela, to ruin his image." If this is the case: was it also a nasty trick to conveniently place him aside George's father? Was George also tricked into saying Mr. Mintoff is an 'honored guest' and was it also a trick that he George allowed him to speak?
On the other hand you spoke of another theory where you thought that George brought Mintoff along on his own initiative in order to boost his campaign. I think that this is the most credible theory. I also think that George really shot himself in the foot with it. He made a big mistake and he only reinforced the accusations against him of living in the past and of being first and foremost not a leader but a mercenary who is dedicated to being anti-establishment.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/article3867557.ece
The fact that Mr. Mintoff, subsequently, made Malta a Republic unilatirally without having to go to a foreign power is evidence of the the fact. All that was neede was of the Soverign Maltese Parliament declaration to the effect.
So please, Dr. Grech-Attard, and labourites like you, do not try and attept to re write history.
Here is one glorifying Dom and the other declaring that he is anti-Dom!
I assume both are referring to the same Dom.
Both seem to be mildly slanted towards the Labour Party.
I have no further desire to discuss anything with these two gentlemen who cannot even agree on the merits of their nonogerian great past leader Dom Mintoff.
A front line columnist who has to waste half his blogging space justifying himself ...
90% of posted comments sounding more like dogs fighting than a discussion between mature adults ,,,
We really moved ahead on the rock ... Switzerland here we come.
Mintoff did not depose Boffa clandestinely, in a plot during the middle of the night, as did those who deposed GBO. These are facts. There is no comparison. He split the party democratically as did Pellegrini and Ganado in the dark ages of the 60s. Erection of a monument does not erase the fact that, when alive, GBO was demoted in a disgraceful manner by whoever took his place! It only tries to soften the harsh truth.
You also failed to mention that Mintoff, for the first time in the history of our island, brought us complete freedom from every other nation. We managed to survive, not without difficulties, but without impositions by any foreign nation, something with which, at last, even the PN agreed and, again for the very first time in history, the two sides met and voted for the Republic. One should remember also that Mintoff had started lobbying for integration and, when that failed, independence in the 50's. He did not cling to his power but resigned so as to save thousands of Maltese jobs, because in those days the Constitution did not leave him any other way. The queen was in charge. And you must have either not been born or was on the winning side during the 60s when we were beaten, shot at, indirectly "exiled", and had our mouths shut. We, too, I can assure you, are still emotionally traumatised. I am only mentioning this because of you bringing up this subject, not because I enjoy remembering such incidents. I try to learn from the past. It's not fair to give a picture of saintly gonziPN leaders and devilish MLP leadership.
So, please, rather than trying to picture PN leaders as heroes and degrading MLP leaders, be just, and mention the GOOD things leaders of BOTH parties did for the country.
But I shall respect his feelings and will cease the Gonzipn lark forthwith. In his next posting I'd like him to let me know which he prefers between Mistragatepn and Jpopn. Anything to appease an old campaigner like me.
Not withstanding what Mintoff is today,I will still applaud his glorious past.....is that so difficult to understand?
"Columnists and supporters of Gonzipn had a field day speculating on the unfortunate health misfortune of Alfred Sant". You mean to tell me that no MLP press or supporters were speculating the future of Dr. Sant?
'Gonzipn' was an election brand - so please when you refer to the Nationalist Party you can use NP for brevity's sake. The brand made the difference between the NP being in government and the MLP, as customary, sitting in Opposition.
If you needed an example of how, irrespective of political stripe, people got together to wish one a speedy recovery , it was the announcement of Dr. Sant's illness. So, please spare us your whine.
So, you supported Mintoff in 1955 (to the hilt) and who resigned in 1958 when the going got tough! A precursor to 1998? And, what was Labour's solution to the paucity of job opportunities in the 50's? Was it not mass emigration?
Was it not a Nationalist government who extended Maltese citizenship to emigrants' children born overseas and who enabled hundreds if not thousands to return with full rights of residency, property ownership, etc.?
And did Dom have a choice to amend the Constitution when he had brought the nation to the verge of civil unrest, violence and deprivation? Those years you describe as Labour's glorious years!?
Although not familiar with your case you quoted, if the worst you feel is politically 'emarginated', you must be lucky. Many people felt much worse in the 70's and 80's many of whom are still suffering the consequences of psychological warefare waged so unashamedly in those days.
@ Joseph Grech-Attard
The last person bringing up the succession of Dr. GBO, should be a Labour supporter whose past leader deposed Sir Paul Boffa to form the MLP! Although many had decided that a new leader of the NP to succeed GBO was timely, once replaced, no one ever referred to GBO as a 'traitor'. The NP erected monuments and treasure his great contributions and describe them as monumental. And look at GBO's successors and make comparisons to Dom's.
So, George Borg Olivier brought us Independence., Eddie Fenech Adami brought us in the EU. and Lawrence Gonzi took us into the Eurozone in his first term as PM.
Dom made us a Republic (with the help of the NP) - KMB brought us, what? Persecution of Church schools? And finally, Dr. Sant froze our application to join the EU, replaced VAT with CET wreaking havoc with government revenue and created the fastest and largest deficits ever recorded in a 22 month period!
The only part of your posting I agree with is that: we should "revert to more positive and constructive criticism with less labelling".
A welcome piece of advice indeed, but some Labour supporters should first stop throwing stones and concentrate on electing the right leader this time around!
I became a Labour supporter when I was a teenager after I saw the patriotic enthusiasm in Mintoff and supported him up to 1985. Notwithstanding I was critical of certain policies but how can anybody with enough self esteem agree 100% with an administration one supports? Only PN supporters condone everything that happens within their party,the JPO affair supports my sweeping statement.
As a close ADC to KMB when he was Prime Minister I was in a situation to witness Dom Mintoff trying to run the show by remote and KMB was not always strong enough to put him in his place, after all Mintoff was the king maker like EFA was to Gonzi.
In 1998 Mintoff tried his power of incumbency on Alfred Sant who in turn stood up to him and the rest is history.
Mintoff's vivid hunger for power after he stepped down put me off him and today I can be classified as an anti Mintoffian, but that does not reduce my admiration for his political achievements and still feel proud for supporting him when I did.
Having said that I still believe that he is the greatest statesman Malta ever had,the political giant of the century. For that and his venerable age of 92 I will certainly not allow anybody trying to ridicule him,Nationalists or Labourites, without defending him. All told I will respect Dom forever as much as I respect Karmenu Mifsud-Bonnici and G. Borg-Olivier.
"....governments of the 70's and 80's which later Labour regimes tried so desperately to make us forget!" as much as gonziPN supporters want us to forget how MLP supporters were treated in the 60's by the then PN, now gonziPN: and how much most of them finished indirecxtly "exiled" to far away countries like Australia, Canada and USA to the sound of band-playing and fanfare. We, too, are still traumatised as much as all others who were ill-treated by the MLP. So nobody should point a finger to anybody!
Why don' we all, including myself, revert to more positive and constructive criticism with less labelling?
I had supported Mintoff to the hilt and that makes me a proud nationalist. Mintoff gained power democratically with a landslide majority in 1955 and resigned in 1958 after parliament unanimously passed the historical 'Break with Britain resolution' 1971 saw Labour back in power and increased their majority in 1976. 1987 reinstated Labour in government with 49% support but legitimate as per a constitution drafted by a PN Government and amended to what it is today by a Labour Government. Does this give a background of a dictatorial regime? You will get two answers half of us will say no and the rest will say yes.
An undisputed fact is a typical case of a person who was politically emarginated,ill treated and discriminated against for ten solid years by a government agency. This isn't idle gossip or political speculation,this happened during a PN administration and received the condemnation of our court,and I was the victim.
Dear Charles, the founder of our Republic would have been up the creek without a paddle had our late Statesman George Borg Olivier not attained Independence first. Maybe you should remember that too.
I suppose we should all revere Dom for his successive governments of the 70's and 80's which later Labour regimes tried so desperately to make us forget!
I know this may read harsh and uncharitable, but then I think of the 15 years of inflicted pain on the nation, of four hour marathon speeches on TV, on the disaster in schools, hospitals, a non-functioning constitutional court, the banning of newspapers, the total lack of quality of life, and I say to hell with respect!
"I don't believe that George Abela is dumb enough to risk being associated with Mintoff."
Then why did Abela let him speak at the activity?
Andrew presented two theories as to who convinced Mintoff to attend George Abela's rally or why would Mintoff bother.
I have a third theory. It was persistent instructions from - sit down - the Commissioner of Police himself through Mr. Mintoff's hearing aid!
I think this theory deserves serious consideration - at least as serious as Mr. Mintoff was when he claimed that the commissioner keeps track of him through his ear piece!
Now should we laugh or cry?
Back in 1982, Mintoff relinquished his responsibilities, when he decided to step down. So did George Ablea in 1998.
In Maltese, there is saying which in a few words very aptly describes the character of these two individuals - they are both sea captains who willl only lead the boat in good weather conditions.
I wonder what would George Abela do if he ever was Prime Minister and he disagreed on a major issue with the European Union. Would he resign?
I wonder what good can come out of it!
I feel so very stupid and suicidal because I did not learn anything new except that MLP never had a good leader, never did anything good for the country and, unless they join PN, ........oooops sorry, gonziPN, they shall never be in governemnt again. Andrew Carits Est!