Avery good friend of mine with a solid grounding in literature once explained to me the theory that there are only very few basic plots in the stories we tell. These basic plots are then amended and altered in their appearance to fake originality. Scratching the surface, and giving them a more studied look, often reveals the true core of the tale and exposes the origins from which the purportedly new story popped out.

...Leading the country is not an exercise of self-glorification- Marthese Portelli

What I have learnt over the past weeks of this intense period of the election campaign has proved this theory right.

The allusion in the title is to a story and a song, both of which talk about greed, empty promises, dissemblance, pride and ambition. For those of us who take politics seriously, and can look beyond the outside veneer of the extravagant political campaign carried out by Joseph Muscat’s party, we can immediately see the parallels.

The hysterical idolisation of Muscat’s persona is reminiscent of the politics of glorification of great leaders from decades ago.

Our choice will have to be made very soon now and we, the people, are being presented with the possibility of making him ‘king’.

Has his campaign convinced us that he is ready to take over the running of the country and to maintain the momentum that we have together achieved, against all odds, over the past years? Or has it been an exercise in bedazzlement, striving forcefully to make us oblivious to the obvious faults and shortcomings of his proposals?

Our information campaign for the Nationalist Party, on the other hand, has been one of dialogue and conviction. Perhaps the best hallmark of authenticity that should be given to our proposals is that they are a natural progression of what has already been achieved. The success that this Government has achieved in education, employment and the economy is the platform from which we are planning to launch our mission for the coming five years.

To start with, our educational tablet proposal is not, as detractors would have us believe, an electoral gimmick or freebie. It is a continuation of our education policy that has seen interactive whiteboards in classrooms and other e-learning initiatives already in our classrooms. The positive health aspects of having our children carry less heavy bags is yet another spin off benefit of this proposal.

Our energy policy is ongoing and has already seen the successful acquisition of European funding for the soon to be completed interconnector cable, enabling us to buy cheaper electricity off the mainland European grid.

The next step is again the responsible utilisation of European Union funding for the construction of a gas pipeline that will provide less expensive gas safely to our shores, enabling the Delimara plant to be converted to sustainable gas operation, as had already been envisaged in the specifications of its construction.

Our employment creation commitments are not pie in the sky. The importance that we have given to the synergy between education, employment and the economy has meant that, in these times of crisis, we have not just survived but actually thrived.

So we can bank on the fact that our policies will generate more prosperity and more government revenue in the process, without the need for any new taxes. This has been confirmed many times, even up till a few days ago, by the rigorous assessments of the EU’s financial monitoring.

So, back to the choice that we have… the PN in government has delivered constantly on the macro issues. We have a track record that gives us credibility for what’s ahead. With a Nationalist Government, we can rest assured that the country is being run responsibly and not run into the ground.

Now, or ever, for that matter, is not the time to be missing the forest for the occasional tree. Leading the country is not an exercise of self-glorification but, more often, one of self-sacrifice as we have so often witnessed over the past few years.

It is the time to make a responsible choice for a government, led by a seasoned and proven Prime Minister, that anticipates and addresses issues. It is never the time for a dilettante who experiments with rash decisions and then regrets bad judgement calls.

We would end up regretting it more than him.

Marthese Portelli is president the PN executive committee.