Candy-sticks for canvassers

Welcome to Malta – a so-called modern democracy but where ministers give public jobs like candy sticks to canvassers, where they publish videos and adverts with nothing to sell but their smirk, at your expense, while the rest have to thrive on what remains of a supposedly transparent and fair society.

Welcome to all, for 10 days or a lifetime, citizens of Malta. Here politics is very reactive. The footballer’s contract lobbied through the minister was then cancelled by the Prime Minister. Same goes for the lawyer with no warrant yet cashing more than the minister thanks to the canvassing father’s link, again cancelled by the Prime Minister. So is that Abela’s job now? An appeals office for candy sticks?

Is this what our country has become? Do we want to live in a country where the misdemeanours of government take page 1,2,3,4 of every newspaper and then we discuss the future in page 5?

This week I was contacted by several young graduates, including one particular law student who share the bench with the canvasser’s daughter, awardee of the 60K-plus contract just for excelling in being close to the minister. He told me of his toil to secure a decent job relating to their studies. For those without the Ian Borg or whatever other ministerial connection, it is becoming normal to go through unpaid traineeships and then applying for one or two masters to kill the downtime before they land a proper placement. This is the pathetic situation of two weights and two measures that this government managed to instil in our society, splitting students into cohorts: the party insiders and the others. Forget about studying abroad or pursing your studies with a second Masters. Labour has inverted the grading scheme that normally employers adopt when choosing the right candidate for the job.

The problem is even more serious when taking into account that this is not a one-off case but a trend which is characterising the current government. Last February news broke that a 19-year old was handpicked to sit on one of the most important executive boards. Nothing wrong until you realise that the qualifications this youth had was that of being a Labour militant. The message that government is sending to youths is not one promoting participation, but one fostering exclusion whereby you need to be a Labour acolyte to get a job or consultancy in public service.

That attitude is profoundly wrong. As a nation, our responsibility is to open the roads for the talented, not merely offer the narrow nepotistic alley towards a government consultancy or tender.

Meanwhile, several students have to work hard to get a job, seeking to get more experience through an internship to be in a better position. On a weekly basis I am contacted by youths eager to gain experience with the European institutions in various domains, some to pursue a career in Brussels and others to return back home with a feather in the cap that will bolster their CVs and increase their chances of getting a job with the firm, government department or private entity they always dreamed of working for. I have a message for all those working hard to advance through merit: it may not look like it when compared to the freebies others get through connections, but hard work does pay off. The toil to advance your way gives you a tougher skin. At the end of the day, that will see you through the difficult times.

It is a sad patch that our country is going through. Instead of joining other European countries in the policy debate on how to secure more openings for youths though innovative entrepreneurial projects, our government is just busy dishing out jobs to the few anointed followers. How are we going to facilitate the emergence of new economic sectors like Malta did in the past to now be able to rely on industries like financial services, gaming and pharmaceuticals? How are we charting the way for more sustainable businesses which rely on the latest technology and provide added value to Malta’s and Gozo’s economy?

Virtually all public fora across Europe these weeks are buzzing with debate on possibilities on how to use European funding for economic recovery after the pandemic. All Member States are expected to submit their first draft on how to use European funding to the European Commission next week. That draft is a matter of public interest and should be open to public scrutiny and consultation. What you have in Malta is a website with an empty box.

While many Maltese businesses have survived through lockdowns also thanks to the COVID wage supplements, business after the pandemic will not recover quickly to pre-COVID-19 turnovers. According to the forecasts from Airports Council International Europe published this week, tourist volumes won’t fully return to 2019 levels until 2025. The road to recovery is a long-haul one.

We must hence brace ourselves and make additional efforts to make the best of all local and EU funding and legislative tools to bolster Maltese jobs. That can’t be done through the self-centred candy sticks for canvassers policy that government pushes right now.