PN in bid to address €8 million debt

The Nationalist Party is set to launch an innovative membership drive with the aim of bringing the party closer to the people, which would be accompanied by an additional drizzle of funds into the party's coffers. 

The plan to address the financial crisis is already being discussed even though PN leader Simon Busuttil is more interested in sealing his dream of having Mario de Marco as deputy leader for parliamentary affairs and Beppe Fenech Adami as deputy leader for party affairs.  De Marco decided against to accept the offer of deputy leader on condition there would be no contestation. 

His decision wasseverely questioned by his closest collaborators who called on him to reconsider.

Though the PN's liquid finances have run dry, with its debt believed to run into figures over €8million, the party remains asset-rich, particularly when it comes to property.

"It is a known secret that a substantial number of people on their death beds had left property to the party, ranging from houses that are used as party clubs to open unbuilt spaces and fields," a senior party source told MaltaToday.

The PN will be using these assets and others as guarantees in order to secure long term deposits which will see the members passing money to the party for a specific number of years, and cash it back with interest once the term is over.

Membership into the PN has been frozen at €10 for years, and will be raised to €25 but it will also entitle members to a free copy of the party's daily and Sunday newspaper. This is also intended to boost advertising, since the papers could then boast of circulation equal to the number of party members.

PN leadership contender Ray Bugeja is being considered as the man behind the project.

MaltaToday contacted Bugeja, 61, who explained that during his campaign for party leader, the employees of the various PN-owned companies had shown concern over the financial position of the party.

Bugeja argued that one of the primary duties of any party leader would be to analyse the financial situation of his party. "The party's assets, the funds deriving from membership and which money goes were, are the first step to finding a way forward," he said. Getting closer to the people and winning back credibility together with stabilising the party's finances were the two main beacons of Bugeja's campaign.

Prior to the leadership elections, Bugeja had requested the PN administration to grant him access to the party's financial reports. However, this never happened. Following the confirmation of the party leader, Bugeja is expecting to be able to look into the party's financial reports sometime next week. "If one takes €8million debt and splits it over 20,000 registered members over five years, it will amount to simply €400 each, meaning a mere €80 annual per member," however prior to making any concrete proposals, Bugeja remained adamant about the need to view these reports.

Bugeja, who after retiring from the leadership race pledged his continuous support to the party, told MaltaToday that his proposal over the membership fee did not highlight any price. "It is clear that the membership structure needs reviewing," he said, "but I've never put a price to it. My proposal was that there would be a progressive increase of the membership fees which will also take into consideration the fact that the party members come from different backgrounds and might not afford high membership fees. The PN is an inclusive party so I would never propose one single fee which might fend off certain people who want to be part of the PN," Bugeja explained.

Speaking to MaltaToday, he said that there are various routes that the PN could adopt to stabilise its finances. Bugeja said that it is of the utmost importance that the party finds its feet financially through the launching of fund raising marathons, fund raising events at district level and any other fund-generating scheme which will strengthen the PN's stance.

Business man Ray Bugeja, whose experience boasts being the Group Chief Financial Officer of companies such as TNT (Milan) and Warburg (UBS) and founder of Kairos Investment Management Limited, reiterated his public statement that the Nationalist Party does not need a CEO but a CFO to bring about the necessary changes. Bugeja repeatedly denied, even on his Facebook profile, that he is not lobbying to become PN's CEO.