I am willing to bet that the electoral campaign will make a shambles of our weak democratic credentials, which have already been shown somewhat for what they are by the way Lawrence Gonzi abused the House of Representatives over the past many months of a lost parliamentary majority. In his Christmas message (The Times, December 24) Dr Gonzi put gloss over the piteous state to which he has reduced those credentials.

But the electoral campaign will be like a Hurricane Sandy compared to our grigalati when put against what has been happening so far. There will be lies, and lies about the lies, and God knows what dirty tricks will be played by the Government, which at all costs will want to be in power for Malta’s 2017 EU rotating presidency. People’s heads will be turning wildly by the claims and counter-claims, so let us hope that by election day our faces will be facing front.

The Prime Minister also said that in the coming weeks the Government will continue to negotiate on Malta’s 2014-20 financial package from the EU. Let us hope Dr Gonzi will not be in power by the time the deal is concluded. As he did with the poorly negotiated agreement on EU help for our irregular migrant situation, Dr Gonzi will trumpet a victory no matter what he ‘achieves’.

Where were the “highly intelligent” and certainly highly paid, Richard Cachia Caruana, and the now PN deputy leader, MEP Simon Busuttil, when the EU made such a hash of solidarity over illegal immigration with one of its own member countries?