Over the past two weeks, a few newspapers have lauded our Prime Minister for having survived in Parliament for the past four years and almost completed his term in power despite a very slim majority.

But how has he managed to stay in power for four years? He has not achieved this by being tactful and skilful. He has survived by kicking out of the way anyone who might be a threat to his power.

He started off with George Abela and then John Dalli. Louis Galea too felt the bottom of his boot. And this went on for four years, clearing away people who might have had value in Parliament and who would not have stood still while Gonzi muddled on and created the biggest national deficit ever. He preferred yes men around him.

All three restive Nationalist MPs did not have the guts to stand up to him from day one. They continued to procrastinate and waste their time in Parliament – not only theirs but that of all 69 members. The Prime Minister wasted Malta’s time warding off ‘votes of confidence’ in himself and members of the Cabinet. These last four years we have had a hung Parliament practically unable to enact any serious laws.

Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando proposed a Bill on divorce. The Prime Minister threw it out of the window and announced a referendum. Let the people decide, he said. The people answered and Gonzi threw the result out of the window and voted against the people’s decision.

He survived four years with this kind of machination disregarding whatever the people said and twisting the facts to suit himself. Should he be trusted once again? Malta fared well in troubled times over the centuries and fared well once again in the latest troubled economic times once again, GonziPN or no GonziPN. And we will continue to fare well again in the future – even better than Gonzi time.

The people of Malta are anxious to have a leadership that speaks the truth whether it sounds good or bad. There is only one truth – the rest are just lies. And we have had enough of those.