Arguably one of the most pressing issues Europe has been facing is, besides migration and problematic rule-of-law countries, the apparently inexpungeable rise of the far right across the continent. Politicians who hail from the fringes make headlines based on their populist rhetoric, making big claims and empty promises that sound nice but do not hold up to much scrutiny.
In the age of rapid mass media, claims emerge before they can be digested or contextualised. This ability, coupled with economic turmoil and the migration crisis, has provided fertile ground for extremist politics to take root and fester. This is the reason we often think twice before commenting on the doings and happenings of racist politicians. When we do, it must always be coupled with a resolute and definitive condemnation.
The alternative would be to obsess over every sentence uttered, and to lose our heads rebutting the outright ridiculous and the plain insane. No level-headed journalist or politician would think this strategy is a good idea.
And yet, the Labour Party’s propaganda machine has gone through great lengths to do exactly this to me. Unfortunately for them, they cannot argue that I am an illegitimate politician. The electorate has trusted me with their vote for 15 years, and now I am humbly awaiting their verdict to see if I can serve them in Europe’s highest legislature for another five.
This past term has been particularly strenuous. While working on legislation that will benefit every Maltese citizen concretely, the Labour government has made sure to keep me busy fending off countless feeble accusations, insults and threats.
It seems like once in a while, their media erratically erects headlines with my name prominently plastered on websites and papers, fervently preaching against the ‘evils’ that I am reigning down upon my own country. I wonder if this includes spearheading legislation that will give fathers paternity leave and additional leave throughout the year.
The rhetoric comes across as extreme and manic as the far-right discourse they themselves condemn and against which they supposedly advocate. With each week that passes, Joseph Muscat’s Super One stoops to a new super low. But each below-the-belt attack only strengthens my resolve, because I know that for Labour to dedicate so many resources to bring me down, then I must really be a durable thorn in their side.
It’s not surprising to anyone why this is so. Labour are not happy with me in the European Parliament. That much is clear and, bizarrely, quite flattering. It’s a sure sign I’ve been doing something right.
Labour are not happy with me in the European Parliament. That much is clear and, bizarrely, quite flattering. It’s a sure sign I’ve been doing something right
According to the Labour Party, Malta’s reputation has been marred, all because of me – as if Pilatus Bank, Ali Sadr Hasheminejad’s US arrest, the Panama Papers, restraining journalistic freedoms, etcetera, never happened. The Prime Minister really does have the gall to pin his hazardous blunders on me personally.
There is a more convincing reason why Labour has been demonising the Nationalist MEPs. It has to do with the fact that unlike them, the institutions of the European Union actually respect us. For years, we have not changed our position on the EU. Time, and a good deal of hard work, have proven the Nationalist Party right about the fact that the EU confers benefits on Malta. This gives us credibility in our work.
The Nationalist MEP delegation has featured among the most hard-working in the entirety of the European Parliament, a reflection of the work my colleagues and I do. We work with everyone who has Europe’s and Malta’s interests at heart, and our track record shows this. What is unacceptable is the way the Labour Party demeans our work for their partisan interests. So much for being united for our country – only insofar as it suits them.
The reality is that while our European family, the EPP, is on our side, Labour’s counterpart has published a manifesto that is rife with proposals and declarations which run contrary to Malta’s interests. Frans Timmermans, the S&D’s candidate for the Commission, has been campaigning to decide on tax rules in all member states: tax harmonisation.
Even the Labour Party should know that our positive economy is partly thanks to the way the Nationalist Party designed our tax system to be competitive with larger EU countries. Harmonising tax will reduce Malta’s competitiveness in the financial sector and cause great harm to our reputation.
It is a huge embarrassment for the Labour Party that they could not get the S&D to even consider Malta’s interests. Instead, they have shamefully allowed them to walk all over Malta.
On the other hand, 15 years in the European Parliament does not come without its advantages. The Labour Party knows only too well the contacts and influence that I have racked up over consistent efforts over the past decade-and-a-half. It was through our clout in the European Parliament that we were able to secure the hard-earned scrutiny the Muscat administration deserves through its rampant corruption.
Hand on heart, I can therefore say that a vote for me is a vote for the continuation of 15 years of experience, 15 years of truly effectual representation on the European stage. Contrast this with Muscat’s inability to convince his own party to change its manifesto in favour of our country. It’s no wonder Labour want to see me gone so badly.
David Casa is a Nationalist Party MEP.
This is a Times of Malta print opinion piece