What is the state of the nation at the end of this annus horribilis? As 2017 draws to a close, where does Malta stand in its quest to become a more fully developed Western country?

Development along Western ideals implies not only becoming more prosperous but also more free and democratic, more open and accountable in governance, more respectful of rights and liberties, fully adherent to the rule of law and more supportive of society’s vulnerable and of individual potential.

It also requires a consensus on fundamental values – equality, truth, the common good – by which a country can lay claim to being a fully evolved democracy.

It is relatively easy to agree on the developmental progress the country has made, such as in wealth and job creation: GDP is growing apace, all types of businesses are doing well, there is full employment, foreign workers and new passport holders are filling the pockets of landlords and swelling the government’s coffers. Advances too have been made in civil rights, with the introduction of gay marriage a milestone this year. There are encouraging signs of the alleviation of poverty, with statistics showing a significant drop in material and social deprivation. Solidarity is alive and well, with yet another record take for charity adding to the feel-good factor.

That sentiment stops there. In other areas the development of the nation has been arrested or thrown into reverse.

Freedom, for one, took a huge hit this year. Already the capacity of citizens to make informed political decisions was severely hampered by the lack of transparency with which government conducted some of its crucial business, such as the sale of State assets. The murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia has now sent the message that freedom of the press exists only up to a point. Overstep that invisible boundary and you risk being blown up.

The law no longer reigns supreme. Enforcers view some citizens as less equal than others before the law. Mention the Panama Papers and what comes to mind is how those at the centre of power with offshore accounts continued to be let off scot-free by the branches of government that should have investigated them. Think of the FIAU and in the same mental frame is a Commissioner of Police and Attorney General paralysed over evidence of kickbacks and money laundering that implicates the same high-ranking officials.

The government’s power is only borrowed from the people, to be used for their benefit. If misused it must be returned to them. Hence the importance of checks and balances. But they’re clearly not working. This year it has become clearer that the institutions meant to protect the citizen from abuse of power have increasingly fallen under the influence of the government they are there to scrutinize.

Deals involving public assets are struck behind a veil of secrecy. The recent VGH and Crane sales, made on the back of public property or taxpayer money, are but the latest examples. Democracy lives to the extent that the people retain control over public officers and public resources. Democracy in Malta is far from alive and well.

Social cohesion and community consensus – the recognition of common goals for the common good – have been deeply damaged by the mistrust and divisions sparked off by the shameless political scandals and breathtaking lack of accountability of the last two years.

The national atmosphere is toxic: thick with suspicion, disgust and outrage on one side and arrogance and cynicism on the other.

Most Maltese want to live in a country whose development is guided fundamentally by the values of truth and goodness. The events of 2017 have seriously stunted such development.

This is a Times of Malta print editorial

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