Authoritarianism loading

The first major reform that Robert Abela attempted to do last year when he got elected was a direct attack on the press. He failed to get his authoritarian reforms passed after all of the independent press rejected the proposed reform. So far, Robert’s plan to divide the press has also failed although he will be trying to do the same thing again by proposing another botched draft through his pseudo-consultation committee.

Having failed to tighten his control over the press, Robert Abela is now turning to the only public institution which holds public officers to account: the Standards Commission. During the last few years, the Standards Commissioner censored Rosianne Cutajar for receiving bribes from Yorgen Fenech and referred the Minister of Education, Justyne Caruana, and her Permanent Secretary Frank Fabri for criminal investigation over an illegal contract to her boyfriend. None of them were criminally investigated by the police.

The pattern is very easy to recognise as there is nearly no public institution left which hasn’t been captured by Labour. Institutions like the attorney-general and the police have been made dysfunctional at will so even if Robert Abela doesn’t have direct control over them, they still serve his interests. Then there is the Public Broadcaster and the cultural institutions which are all under the direct control of the Labour government. Basically, this is also how a one-party state function, and turning Malta into one is Robert’s only and ultimate aim.

In the immediate future, the government also intends to keep tightening the restrictions on free speech under the guise of “anti-bullying” laws. These farcical laws which are always mostly abused were in the process of benign chipped away and deleted during the Muscat era in a lengthy exercise to delete Draconian laws – Robert Abela intends to bring these Draconian laws into full force.

It is not my pleasure to be alarming, but I know Robert Abela’s methods of deceit and conspiracy by personal experience and so far, I have been proven right every step of the way on Robert Abela’s authoritarian intentions. There’s a very simple and common saying which is relevant to Robert Abela which goes like “Those worthy of having power are those who don’t desire it”.