I’m glad that the Nationalist Party is discussing what the hell is wrong with it. We have long been repeating ad naseaum why the PN can’t make inroads with the electorate while the Labour Party is in meltdown. Here’s a quick reminder:
1. PN is too conservative for the society of today and tomorrow
This is very simple and a matter of simple mathematics and demographics and not a matter of opinion. Holding dear religious values at the expense of the Party’s and national interests is illogical but here we are. The number of people who are in favour of the legalisation of abortion will only keep increasing. A large number of people in Malta will not vote for a Party which has a misogynistic position on abortion and the sooner PN realises this, the better. PN can easily compromise with its religious values by allowing decriminlisation and stopping short of legalisation. PN has to approach this issue with a sense of religious empathy and not religious zealotry. If I was the Secretary-General of PN I would force all MPs to brush up their reading of Saint Thomas Aquinas before re-considering their position on abortion.
2. PN is not considered a serious alternative to the government
PN has some serious people with a lot of integrity like Mark Anthony Sammut but it has also a lot of MPs who contribute nothing to politics and PN can’t afford to have these kinds of politicians. Politicians like Mario De Marco and Carm Mifsud Bonnici are contributing nothing to the political struggle and should make way for younger upstarts who are more motivated. Additionally, PN needs to get serious on many issues – proposing simplistic ideas like “the liberalisation” of the electricity distribution shows that PN is still trying to figure out what needs to be done. There needs to be coherent and well-drawn plans after discussions with many people and entities.
3. Where’s the fire?
Something PN is failing to do is to provide the fire of a strong and resistant Opposition. PN allows itself to be humiliated by the bullshit propaganda and fake theatre of the Labour Party. I remember back then when I was still in Labour when Daphne Caruana Galizia used to criticize Simon Busuttil for being too nice, saying that although Busuttil’s character is the appropriate one in private and public settings, it is not appropriate for the setting of Maltese politics where victories are built on the verbal evisceration of your opponent. PN is still stuck with the “nice guy” mentality.
4. PN needs to learn from PP + Vox failure
PN needs to learn from PP’s failure in winning the government due to its association with the lunatics of Vox. Although the majority of the Spanish clearly voted for a new economic and social model as opposed to the socialists’ way of doing things, PP could not get the absolute majority because voters made it absolutely clear they were not going to tolerate far-right lunatics. This will probably enable Sanchez to form another very shaky and unstable coalition government with the communists. So the signs are explicitly obvious and these trends are also very similar in Malta – despite the fact that PN is considered more serious than Labour, PN risks remaining in Opposition if it is associated with far-right lunatics who peddle anti-abortion misogyny, conspiracies and other lunatic ideas.
The root cause for the PN’s stagnancy lies at the leadership level. With the right leadership, these issues would have been addressed, or at least well on the way to being addressed.
Leadership is a reflection of opposing forces within. Dont blame leadership. Its only there because it is deemed to be the most neutral between the current most powerful leading factions. PN these are the classic liberals vs conservatives so obviously the only leadership both would accepts is a neutral minority that is not a threat to either side. One without any backbone to do what it says or even mean what it says
Spot on Mr Camilleri that Carm Mifsud Bonnici is such a classic example of what is wrong with PN and still is. That man did Jack s**t while minister and does even less now so what does PN do? Force a woman elected through this new gender corrective mechanism to let him have her seat and have him circumvent the peoples will ! Is this the PN that is meant to replace a corrupt PL? That was absolutely ridiculous thing to do. And for what? A waste of space whose only claim to fame is a very popular ancestor PN politician who lived 100 years ago.
And don’t get me started with Calascione who failed so badly at every public election that even Zaren Tal Ajkla did better. Yet there he is PN Deputy leader. Why? Cause he’s a fanatic right wing anti pro choice and anti everything that speaks or quacks like a non Maltese
There is one solution for Malta PN or PL splits up
Not very deep thinking there in your final paragraph Mark.
Remember that Spain almost a century ago was used as a testing ground for World War Two. Now cast your eyes to The Ukraine – ‘The Border’.
Stating that being pro-life is equivalent to have a misogynistic position on abortion is like stating that paying tax on corrupt proceeds makes it ok