Is this really happening? Has everybody gone blind or in a deep sleep? Have we all become so tolerant to be dragged about and played with like puppets? Does anyone realise what Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is doing?
In the 2010 Budget, the government gave the public a wage increase of a mere €1.16 a week to cover for the cost of living increase. When one calculates this on an hourly basis, it rounds up to €0.03. This is how much Dr Gonzi’s regime values our workers! I recall Dr Gonzi saying this is a time when all need to roll up their sleeves and give their best to the country. It all sounds familiar: a time of sacrifice and austerity for the Maltese people.
Yet, there is some element of contradiction in the statement by the same government that past sacrifices are starting to pay off. It seems we are still heading into worse times. Not quite so for the few individuals who call themselves politicians serving the public and the country – with the exception of the opposition side, which I will clarify later.
Dr Gonzi and his regime seem to be living in a different Malta, a Malta where money is no problem. Dr Gonzi decided to raise his salary and that of members of Parliament too. However, not by a ridiculous, mere €1.16 a week but a hefty €600 a week. Right out of our pockets: taxpayers’ funds. Money that should have been invested in the country’s much-needed development and people’s welfare.
This rise alone, granted notwithstanding the normal pay and benefits already enjoyed by MPs, will cost taxpayers €2,028,000 yearly. It is squandering taxpayer’s money. It is abuse of power. This is so evidently true the opposition has, very responsibly, refused to accept this rise, which, as Labour leader Joseph Muscat said, “comes at a very bad time... a time when the public is being asked to endure and do sacrifices”. I agree with Dr Muscat’s statement to some extent. In my opinion, Dr Muscat did put it a little softly considering he is a person with a sound legal background.
We need to open our eyes. Malta needs to wake up and put a stop to this. Dr Gonzi has acted irresponsibly. We have enough expenses already. The Valletta project, the new Parliament building and the open-air theatre will cost taxpayers a further estimated €92 million.
The miserable wage increase we got disappeared only two days after it came into force when we were faced with a shocking increase in fuel prices on the morning of January 3, when the price of unleaded fuel alone reached a high of €1.31 a litre. Not to mention the rise in the price of liquid gas, which seems to have been caught in an upwards spiral in terms of price, this having risen nearly three times in just eight weeks. This will definitely have a negative impact on other commodities and food provisions. The Maltese will have to cope with increases in prices and cost of living of astronomical proportions with just a wage rise of €1.16 a week.
It is time to put a stop to this. It is time for the country to wake up. It is time for change in the country’s leadership.