Debono leaves decision to the last moment

At 8pm this evening the electoral commission will close its doors in Valletta and by then we will know who will be contesting where on 9 March. With the majority of candidatures being known for weeks, two fundamental questions remain unanswered. Which district will Labour leader Joseph Muscat contest apart from the second district? And maybe even more tantalising, will Franco Debono throw his name in the hat?

Although the dissenting Nationalist MP seemingly wants to keep everyone guessing until the last minute he told MaltaToday that he was finding it "difficult" to tell his loyal followers "no".

"I wouldn't like to let the people down and I am finding it very difficult to say no," the Ghaxaq MP said, adding that hundreds of persons have been urging him to contest the election.

The Ghaxaq MP who fell out with the PN over the party's failure to carry out the reforms he championed over the last two years, is most likely to contest the fifth electoral district, if Debono does walk the talk.

In 2008, Debono garnered the handsome total of 2,065 first count votes and was the youngest MP elected in the last election. However if he will contest as an independent or on the People's Party For Democratic Reform ticket, it is unlikely that he will gain a similar tally.

Debono has been weighing up his options for weeks, and following his vote against the Budget on 7 December, which spelt the end for the PN government, he has kept his cards close to his chest.

A strong showing on the fifth district could damage the PN on the Labour-leaning district, however his candidature could have the opposite effect nationally and reinvigorate the PN's seemingly faltering campaign.   

The dissident MP's harsh criticism of the party he has militated in since a young age has not relented and in a blog post published on Tuesday, Debono hit out at Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and transport minister Austin Gatt who yesterday handed in a statement to the Police Commissioner in connection to the investigations on Enemalta's oil procurement.

Debono wrote: "Has Gonzi become a magistrate now? He said an inquiry could be opened at a later stage. It is NOT up to him to decide and if he has meddled that is abuse of power. I am making it clear that if he has meddled with the opening of a magisterial inquest he should be investigated. It is highly suspicious IF a magisterial inquest has not been opened."

The MP insisted that magisterial inquests are opened even in relation to thefts of relatively small amounts and asked "Was an inquest opened in this tangentopoli-like mega-scandal concerning oil purchases? If not, why?"

If Debono does decide to contest the 9 March election, he will certainly add some flavour to what has been a mostly dull contest so far. However, we'll only have a clearer picture at 8pm tonight. For the time being we'll have to stick to tablets and utility bills.