The Forum grouping of unions has expressed disappointment that a parliamentary debate on an opposition motion to change the law governing the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development, aimed at securing Forum a seat on the council, took the form of a “political game”.
Forum chairman John Bencini said he was not satisfied with the level of political debate but was pleased the government had left the door “ajar”.
“The discussion was not on whether Forum should become a full member of the council but on the composition of the MCESD and whether the law should be changed to reflect the present circumstances 10 years after it was enacted. Unfortunately, it was more of a political game rather than a serious debate, with several out-of-context arguments being made to weaken the motion,” he said.
Mr Bencini said he had mixed feelings about what happened in Parliament on Monday. He was also disappointed the government had adopted the same stand ever since Forum first requested to join the council more than five years ago.
“In a two-and-a-half-hour long debate, maybe 15 to 30 minutes were actually spent discussing the subject matter,” he said.
The association of 11 unions, representing a total of 12,000 workers, including the Malta Union of Teachers and the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses, has been complaining of being muzzled when it was left out of the consultative council.
The government says it has no objection to giving Forum a place but holds that changes to the MCESD’s composition must take place by consensus among social partners.
Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi moved an amendment to the motion suggesting the government continue to work for a solution while appealing to MCESD members to participate in discussions and giving space to all those who wanted to participate.
No vote was taken at the end of the debate as the govern-ment and the opposition agreed it would take place at a later date.
Mr Bencini pointed out that the motion, moved by Labour MP Gino Cauchi, did not have “a political tinge”. Forum had approached members of Parliament from both sides of the House and Mr Cauchi had agreed to present the motion.
“We will take Dr Gonzi’s word for it that the government had not closed any door to Forum joining. We will believe the issue of consensus is just an excuse as there is no need for consensus for more members to join the council,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Bencini wrote to the Parliamentary Secretary for Public Dialogue, Chris Said over the setting up an MCESD sub-committee tasked with looking into the body’s workings, complaining the employer and union representatives on the sub-committee had not yet been nominated let alone met to discuss the situation.