Two years: our assessment

Two years ago, precisely to the day, the electorate voted. The final electoral outcome left the opposition party with a 36,000 vote deficit and the Labour party in an unquestionably strong position.

This was not the result only of a much better electoral campaign and fresher look on the Labour party’s side. It was also the result of 25 years of party dominance by the PN during which the Nationalist administration had distanced itself from the electorate and its core vote, digging itself into a dark corner.

Two years ago the electorate proved again that no one is forever, and that democracy always, somehow, prevails.

People were willing to forget the past that had been brought up so often, and they chose to give the young 39 year-old Labour leader, Joseph Muscat, more than a simple chance.

The Labour party was elected on a political programme which was ambitious on both the practical and political levels. In the first months of this administration there is little doubt that the government’s approach to business has been aggressive – a distant cry from the sluggish approach before 2013 in many agencies such as Malta Enterprise. Government’s friendliness with business, accommodating to its demands and responsive to its role in job creation, has been evident.

The flipside to this is that the issue of good governance – believed by many of having been one of Joseph Muscat’s electoral battle cries – was relegated to second division, because government believes that more often than not the end justifies the means. In its style of running government like a business, of being contemptuous of a bureaucratic structure that offers the citizenry a system of checks and balance against abuse of power, the Labour administration landed itself in very uncomfortable situations such as that of the Café Premier and the Sai Mizzi saga, to name a few.

Even the mere mention of meritocracy is a sore point, at least to those who believed that the Labour government would employ a new style towards the system of political appointments and the patronage that such appointments provides. With the exception of those merchants who joined Labour for a handsome price, there have been some appointments where merit truly suffered at the hands of partisanship.

On a political level, Muscat has failed to prove that meritocracy is indeed high on his agenda. He argues that he has kept certain Nationalists in key positions. But the media would rather read this statement as Nationalists who have transferred their allegiance to this administration.

But beyond the realisation of the Tagħna llkoll slogan, the Muscat administration has also realised some notable achievements. Civil unions and gay adoptions will be a hallmark of the Labour administration. On gender equality, Labour has yet to make the presence of more women in decision-making positions a reality. But we are moving further into a world of equality with the gender recognition bill and true rights for trans people.

The enactment of the Whistleblower Act was also another important step and the removal of time-barring on acts of political corruption a very valuable decision.

Various initiatives, especially in the social field, are more than notable: aligning society to the needs of the disabled and encouraging more women to work through the availability of free childcare centres have been significant. There is no doubt that free childcare will be one of the revolutionary aspects of the Muscat legacy, addressing the problem of women not working and sustaining pension financing.

As are the issues of ensuring that short contracts for workers in the private sector are not tantamount to abusive employment.

We note that the reduction of utility bills is welcome in reducing energy inflation and improving competitiveness for businesses, but the power station construction phase remains an enigma and the lack of transparency in explaining how it will finance its utility reductions has done little for the Labour administration’s credibility.

The government has a tall order. It needs to address the health issue, especially with regard to the issue of bed shortages and social cases, as well as tackle the sustainability of pension. It needs to address traffic problems, the inadequacy of roads and lack of alternative public transport systems that can reduce cars on the roads.

There is enough evidence to point to a success story in the economy, based on the drive that Muscat and his advisers apportion to this segment.  But what many augur is that Muscat will look beyond these first two years and set more positive trends in the choice and selection of public officers and in more transparency in public tenders. And to push less politically inclined individuals to key positions.

He should take the first steps in addressing the constitutional changes that are needed in relation to electoral reform.

And most importantly, he must show himself more agreeable and accessible to the environmentalist movement and civil society organisations that challenge his prejudice, and base his political assumptions not on the character of the individuals who lobby for change, but rather for the future generations who would stand to benefit if we invest in more environmental protection.