Twenty five years ago, Eddie Fenech Adami became prime minister of a country that had been left in shambles after 16 years of Mintoffian-style socialism.
One of the very first decisions Fenech Adami had to take was what to do with the country’s top civil servants. In his autobiography, he wrote: “We were aware of the political leanings of most civil servants but, by and large, those in senior positions lived the British civil service tradition: they were prepared to work with any government irrespective of their political views.”
In line with the politics of reconciliation, the PN extended a trusting hand to the civil service. Fenech Adami knew that the success of any government depended on having an efficient public service, a service that is loyal to the public it serves.
When Joseph Muscat writes his memoires, he will have a hard time finding the right words to explain the way he treated the public service in his first days of office.
Despite his promise of meritocracy and of putting aside political differences, Muscat carried out a political cleansing of the public service. His opening gambit was the placing of the first political appointee as head of the civil service. Next to go were the permanent secretaries and a number of directors general and directors. The cleansing exercise was also extended to the entities in which the government has a controlling interest, almost as if chief executive officers and other senior managers were being handpicked from the Labour Who’s Who.
Even regulatory authorities suffered the same fate. These authorities, set up as independent safeguards of interests of the citizens, including, if necessary, defence against any abuse by the government, are now being led by people who are themselves part of the government. Some of our supposedly independent authorities are now even headed by Labour members of Parliament.
Promotions and appointments within the armed forces are the most blatant case in point of all the above.
The effect of this politicisation of the public service should have us worried. Take, for instance, the current debate on the risky storage of gas in Marsaxlokk bay.
The Occupational Health and Safety Authority, which is supposed to review the safety aspects of the project, is headed by a Labour member of Parliament. Where does that leave us?
What kind of protection can the residents of Marsaxlokk, Marsascala and Birżebbuġa expect from regulators that are a part of the government?
This is not the way things were done in the past and this is not the way things happen across Europe. It is essential that independent authorities remain just that and are kept at arm’s length from the government. Only then can we have the peace of mind that those who are deciding our fate are doing so without fear or favour.
Muscat used to drone on about making Malta a truly European country. I have yet to meet one rational person who believes that the way he handled the public service is close to any sort of European model. Some might say that this is hardly surprising, given the kind of company Muscat likes to keep and the sort of countries Malta has become close to.
Joseph Muscat carried out a political cleansing of the public service
The Prime Minister is now set to carry out his first Cabinet reshuffle. I doubt whether the exercise will be anything more than just a few cosmetic changes or finding a scapegoat to throw under the bus.
If Muscat’s brand of populism is good for anything then it is at keeping his road show perception intact. But, soon, he will have to start facing the consequences of decisions taken by his ministers and politically-appointed public servants.
He will undoubtedly find somebody to pay the price once all these issues start impacting on Labour’s popularity.
In his first year of office, Muscat has taken the unprecedented step of sidelining valid people within the public service and appointing in their stead individuals close to him and his inner circle. In so doing, he has robbed us from a level of comfort we had, knowing that institutions had no interest in protecting the government of the day.
So much for the Malta Tagħna Lkoll confidence trick.
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Roberta Metsola is a Nationalist MEP.