Franco Debono: doing the unthinkable

Carm Mifsud Bonnici’s attempt to interpret the motion as a personal attack on him, clearly backfired.

Saviour Balzan 30 May 2012, 12:00am

1 min read

Franco Debono has proven that he does have those proverbial balls, after all.

Lawrence Gonzi cannot ignore the conclusions of this motion. They are serious and ignoring them would be unadulterated arrogance.

There are things you do and will never be forgotten for doing. When PN backbencher Franco Debono voted with the Labour Opposition he surprised everyone, including the opposition and those in the media.

He has proven that he does have those proverbial balls, after all.

Carm Mifsud Bonnici's speech did not help matters. His attempt to interpret the motion as a personal attack on him, clearly backfired. I have yet to hear someone trumpeting his own achievements and expressing pity for himself in the way Mifsud Bonnici did.

Had he not resigned he would have condemned himself to further 'attack' and 'ridicule'. It was not only a case of indifference to the House but an offence to our understanding of political responsibility in a parliamentary democracy.

Lawrence Gonzi as Prime Minister will have a very difficult time ahead of him.

If he chooses to ignore the conclusions of this motion he will suffer a further backlash. If he was not thinking of an early election, then surely this motion must set the whole thinking process in motion.

He cannot go on governing like this. His decision to plod on will only be translated as arrogance - something that does not garner votes.

It will also mean that Franco Debono will be justified in blowing his top. At least this time round, we are obliged to listen to what he has to say.

Founder and co-owner of MaltaToday, Saviour Balzan has reported on Maltese politics and...

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'Lawrence Gonzi as Prime Minister will have a very difficult time ahead of him.'.....u kif meta ghandu tlett kwarti tal Kabinet reqdin raqda papali....meta tara x'qed jikkontribwixxu l-Ministri li fadal jwegga kull ras ta' dak li ghandu ghal qalbu din Malta gzira zghira fit-tarf tal Mediterran li qeda fl-Europa. X'qed jikkontribwixxu dawn: Tonio1, Giovanna, Cassar, Dolores u Gatt meta tqabbilom ma Said, Azzopardi u Demarco li bil-fors iridu jerfaw il-karru tal-Prim Ministru u b'Tonio2 dejjem barra minn Malta u Pullicino li jidher li ghandu l-kontroll biss fuq l-ambjent tat-toroq.

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CMB had stated explicitly that Gonzi was well aware of his work in the Ministry and also got his blessing for his decision. Hence, one can argue logically that Gonzi should also resign and should have resigned before CMB.

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If we believe the comment passed by FD towards CMB one understands that he wanted to fire the man not the ministry!!!!! And CMB did everthing bad?? Oh my God!!!

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Salv Franco mwegga wisq, meta joffendulek l-ommok b'mod krudili b'gideb sfaccat ma ghadux jew ma baqax lejali lejn il Partit Barra hekk Salv ejjew vera niflu xghamel Carm Mifsud Bonnici kull dekasteru li kellu, kelma wahda raqad raqda sewwa u bil kemm nghidlek injora t-tgergir u ma ghamel xejn u dawn fatti. Kull proposta siewja anki min tan naha tieghu injorom u l-anqas biss attwom. Il Qrati , puluzija, habs, x'ma kellux fjask wara l-iehor u baqa ta rasu, is-sena l-ohra qal li kien ma jiflahx imma blogs fuq gazzetti baqa jikteb. Dan veru kien ma jiflahx jew skuza? Mhux ta stoffa, ligijiet li saru fit 2005 l-anqas attwom bhal ta l-avukat jkun mal imputat. Saru bi tqanzih u fl-ahhar gie sforzat jghamilom fi 2010. F'Kelma wahda dan qaghad CICCI BEQQI basta ha l-hames mitt euro fil gimgha li l-anqas haqqu l-paga li ha sissa, jiddispjacini nghid hekk imma dan kien Ministru li ha post Zammit Dimech li bhala Ministru kien l-aktar wiehed li kien jigi jaqa u jqum, l-aktar ghazzien u Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici mhux b'anqas

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"Lawrence Gonzi as Prime Minister will have a very difficult time ahead of him." ....... I agree completely infact the gap narrowing that Austin Gatt boasted about this week has surely taken a jolt and is now widening again. Like what happened to Dr Sant the people do not want a party at war with itself to govern.

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Why ‘unthinkable’? Unthinkable that FD has backed his stand with actions or that a minister has finally been made accountable for the failings in his ministry? Why must the norm in other democratic countries cause shock waves in Malta? Unthinkable indeed but isn’t it about time that we wake up to the realities of active democratic state.? May it be the divorce issue, rights for minorities or the fact that our staid political system is so antiquated that accountability is preached but never practiced, until now that is. Once can only hope that like opening up a Pandora’s box, it will not so easy to reverse the process and once they sober up again, the opposition, in turn, will have to face up to the demons, they have set free. Demons for them maybe, but certainly a small blessing in disguise for democracy in Malta.

Stefan Mifsud •

Clearly CMB did not deserve this as a person and as one of the current cabinet. As others have stated it was his ministry and not himself which was voted to resignation. However, and also as others have said, in the present cabal of our cabinet there are many others who deserved, and still deserve to be booted out. CMB should have been the last on this list. However, it took FD (a man who I have always said has balls of steel) to bring such a thing about. There is no other like him who is willing to sacrifice his political career and challenge any of the others. Which is unfortunate for CMB. Unfortunate also is that we do not have another 68 parliamentarians with the same sized balls as FD. As otherwise we would all have a better country, better way of life, better democracy and better politics.

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I would propose "Franco doing the thinkable". With so much water under the bridge, and Franco finally convinced that he would never overcome the hatred showered on him by the present posse of PN apologists, he has made up his mind. He has thrown in the towel. Definitely, Franco would make a comeback in 5 years time as the maturing electorate would want his sort back. OK he is an exhibitionist and an able, capable, achieving bast**d of a primadonna, but tell me which aspiring politician isn't. It is just that Franco does not come from the same high class (sic) PN cloth of old, so he does things differently and he cannot stand pretence. There are many in this class within the PN fold, but, unlike Franco, few that will not stay in the meek shadows they are placed. Forward to next Monday.

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Let me start off by saying that on apersonal basis I sympatize with CMB.I m saying this not because he did not deserve to be oustted from Minister but I truly believe that ,like Saviour Balzan said there are other ministers who surely deserved to be kicked out for much more serious shortcomings.people like AG,TF & DC to mention just a few had much reason to lose their job. I think that gonzi is the only person responsible for all this,letting CMB get humiliated when he could have easily change CMB ministerial duties long before all this happened.Gonzi saw all this coming & by sacrifising CMB he might have thought that FD`s crusade will come to an end once & for all he, (Gonzi) can steer his ship till the end of the legislature.

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Ex-Minister Mifsud Bonnici skills on how to run a Ministry was the issue here - obviously he failed. I am sure he did his utmost but unfortunately it was not enough. Problems at the prison (drugs) and Police never got solved. It is sad but hey why do we have to give credit to person when he has drastically failed. It is a bad message to everybody.

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Franco Debono today has shown that he is not there for money, he knows he is finished with PN as a candidate, I must say I had my doubts about him and I thought he had no balls, obviously he must have suffered a lot as he mentioned, he is guarded by police 24hrs every day. He is a PN member of parliament for God's sake, why does this guy need protection , Mintoff never had any protection in 1998 from the authorities. This shows that PN has taken us back to the dark ages of the sixties, when the uncle of the uncle has let one sixth of the population unwillingly to emigrate.