Editorial | Wednesday, 26 March 2008

Keeping a promise

Getting off to a good start is essential in any endeavour or task one sets out to perform in life.
As a rule once things start well they end up even better. One cannot say that the very first decision taken by government to join the Partnership for Peace, in its first cabinet meeting does not augur well for the simple reason that the right decision for our country was taken wrongly.
The method used is politically incorrect for a number of reasons that warrant discussion. The majority enjoyed by this government is a relative majority over the opposition of just one thousand five hundred votes, barely a sufficient reason to bulldoze through an Opposition presently in disarray following the resignation of its leader. Good judgement would have required that this right decision be taken after discussion with the Opposition and a further discussion in parliament where all opinions could have been freely expressed in an open debate.
A further reason not to have made this rush decision was its absence from the electoral programme of the party now re-elected to power. Soon after his victory the Prime Minister had insisted that his message was one of unity in the long-term interests of the country.
We believe that following our admission into the European Union and after the Opposition’s acceptance of the electorate’s decision in 2003 there was growing consensus in foreign affairs. Slowly but surely there was a sense of statesmanship creeping into our body politic with both parties agreeing on many of the decisions taken by government in the country’s national interest.
A united front in foreign affairs guarantees a sense of continuity even in the case of a change of government. Unfortunately this was not to be the case since this hasty decision is bound to have, as it has had already, a ripple effect on the relationship between the Government and the Opposition. It is clear that government was influenced internally to take this decision now that the Opposition can offer close to little resistance being in the doldrums following its third electoral defeat.
Irrespective of whether PfP membership is of benefit or not to the country, the major objection is with the way the decision was taken which went against the Prime Minister’s vow to run the country by pooling in all resources available irrespective of political leanings.
This decision was a clear fly in the face of any avowed intention to run the country together in the national interest. The close election result prompted Lawrence Gonzi to say that he will listen to the voice of the people when implementing his electoral manifesto.
This pledge seems to have been ignored in one of the very first decisions taken by cabinet. This begs the question whether on other matters of national interest the Opposition will be given a say such as the choice of president in one year’s time and the appointment of the Speaker.
These are not matters of little importance but rather will have consequences also on the business climate in the country since business and commerce thrive on stability and unity in a country. The milestones achieved in the economic sphere including the reduction of the deficit and entry into euro zone now need to be a standard setter for achieving high standards in public life where to date our tendency to tolerate conflict of interest situations and unethical behaviour has placed us low as a country in the transparency tables regulating corruption.
The country needs to address this issue and fast as it can serve as a deterrent to carry on attracting such high volumes of foreign investment as achieved in recent years and which need to carry on flowing into the country if we are to achieve commendable growth rates.