Gale force politics

As the gregale hit the Maltese Islands, another storm was about to be unleashed.
It could be that we are reading too much into every little glitch on the political horizon, but the timing of a grey day with Saharan sand, wind and rain matched the sombre political mood of the country.
Yet, it is very obvious that the resentment for this administration among PN voters is very high. They are far from being convinced by Labour, but they know that in the local council elections, they have the chance to protest and to show their disapproval.
Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi may have thought that by putting his name to a one-man contest and winning hands down was the solution.
In reality, he may have miscalculated big time.
There is evidence, but this can only be confirmed by reading the results when they are counted at the counting hall... though it is clear that hard-nosed Nationalists have stayed at home and refused to vote. It is clear that many have simply not collected their vote.
That vote is a protest vote, and if Lawrence Gonzi decides to ignore them simply to give the impression that the local council elections do not have the same weight as general elections, I'm afraid he is digging his party's grave even deeper.
He's already made a mistake by anointing Simon Busuttil, in the same way Dom Mintoff anointed Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici.
Many Nationalists have remarked to me that history repeats itself.
Gonzi has angered his ministers and senior politicians, and has increased their mistrust of Richard Cachia Caruana, who continues to politically influence decisions in the party according to what he thinks is in the PN's best interests.
It's no secret that just as Gonzi was the Cardinal's choice in the past, Simon Busuttil is the choice of the man who would be God.
When people talk of politics and political parties they ignore all the rhetoric about the interests of the nation and the people.
Really and truly it is - with apologies to Peter Davies - a whole load of crap.
Peter Davies can get away with calling the airline he runs 'crap' but we lesser mortals, who pay for his half a million euro salary, are taken to task for referring to local political discourse as 'crap'.
Keeping parties in power is all about power.  Power is all about money and money is all about making more money and maintaining influence.
I have always said that the unfortunate thing about politicians who were born without an appreciation of history is that they forget where they came from, and where they are heading.
Gonzi does not have roots in the past.  
He talks about the past all the time, but has no relation to the past. He was not there when it mattered, and played no part in it. And yet, he talks about the past as if he were a Vietnam veteran.  
Muscat talks of the past too, and has gone as far as praising the Eddie Fenech Adami years, but he does this to avoid returning to the ugly past to justify the role of a future Labour government.
The truth is that the decision of most people in elections - now or in the very near future - is not based on the merits (or perceived merits) of Joseph Muscat.
A small minority may be influenced by his gentler and calm disposition.   
Rather, I am convinced that their decision-making process is based on the dinosaur politics of this administration. The widespread disdain for accountability and the nepotism that reeks of Mintoffianism and bad governance.
It is a pity that Dear Dom - with all its bias - will be coming to cinemas only just this month. It should have been screened in 1998, when 'Dear Dom' was the darling of the Nationalist Party, when Pierre Portelli would go through great lengths in being patient (as he is with that terrible self-centred presenter on PBS, Joe Mifsud) while listening to Dom attack Alfred Sant's plans for the Cottonera waterfront - the same waterfront which was later developed by the Nationalist administration, and privatised.
Then, when attacking Sant by using 'the Satan of politics' was perfectly justified.
History does not only repeat itself, it comes back with a vengeance, and the same personalities who accused others of being hypocrites are suddenly the champions of hypocrisy.
But back to the local councils.
In these councils we have seen very little difference between Nationalist and Labour councillors. The level of patronage has been more or less at par.  It is true the Labour Party has come out with proposals and the PN none, but in reality, the problem of local councils has more to do with the structure.  
The major problem is that local councils and councillors are in no position to decide on tenders and financial matters.
They simply cannot be trusted.
And going by what the anaesthist Joanna Gonzi had to say about Martin Debono's mother, not only are they not to be trusted, but never given the chance to serve in public life.
Yet again, the voting pattern has a lot to do with what people think on a national level.  
As I write, I would not know for whom to vote.
But I would know whom to vote against.
Or better still, I would vote - if I could - for Julian Galea: a vote for mediocrity and apartheid politics.
The nature of party politics has reduced us to a condition where we have lost faith in the politician and the policies. We have lost faith in the notion that things can really change.
It will take a miracle for our convictions to be determined by political ideas.  
Most of the protest vote and transfer of voting is unfortunately determined by the 'protest' element.
Lawrence Gonzi may not have realised this but people around him such as Richard Cachia Caruana have. His unpopularity could drive the PN further down the road and the country into further stagnation.
Yet I doubt whether that consideration will tickle his mind.
He will probably put the blame on the opposition.
A little historical anecdote would not hurt:
'On the eve of the French Revolution Marie Antoinette, history reminds us, was convinced that the political instability she saw all around her would soon pass.'
No further comment is needed.