Mamma mia, no better than Alfred Sant
The rot starts at the top
Alfred Sant destroyed his chances of success by undermining his own credibility.
He would take lies and half-truths and repeat them until they had grown into monsters.
Because the more gullible members of his audience, and the ones who wanted to believe ill of others, took him at his word and turned against the subject or subjects of his falsehoods, he thought his strategy was working.
He had ignored or just not noticed the fact that a significant number of those who heard him were shocked, dismayed and extremely concerned that a man who could twist the truth in a manner that can only be described as totalitarian could one day become prime minister.
The leaders of the Labour Party need to understand that correctness and the truth are always the best option because large parts of your audience know the truth and know what is correct, and if they see you promoting lies and half-truths they will do more than not take you seriously.
They will begin to worry that you might become prime minister, and they will work to ensure that it doesn’t happen, because decent people don’t want a liar or dissimbler in charge of the country.
Yesterday, our future prime minister spoke in Hal Ghaxaq. This is the report in The Times today:
During the event in Għaxaq, Dr Muscat also said he was “very worried” about allegations made by journalist Saviour Balzan who claimed he received a visit from Edgar Galea Curmi, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, before the election, giving him information about former Green party chairman Harry Vassallo that the police had on payment of VAT.
He expected Police Commissioner John Rizzo to react swiftly to these allegations as he did last week after The Times reported that the police had filed charges against Cyrus Engerer 10 days after he resigned from the Nationalist Party.
Now Muscat’s audience in Hal Ghaxaq are unlikely to be keen followers of any news other than that on Super One. They certainly do not read this blog (though you never know).
But Muscat and his advisers do. They will have read my report of my conversation with Edgar Galea Curmi, in which he explained that he went to Saviour Balzan’s house at Balzan’s request, even though he was extremely harried in the run-up to the general election, because Balzan had told him that he was unable to leave the house as his wife was in extremis (that is true – she died shortly afterwards).
Balzan had requested the meeting because he wished to discuss various political issues – like me, he was writing a daily electoral blog, from his home because he was unable to go to the office.
After Edgar Galea Curmi went out of his way for Balzan on compassionate grounds, Balzan sent him a card thanking him for his kindness and telling him ‘Edgar, your heart is too soft for politics’.
Joseph Muscat read this. He knew that Galea Curmi was telling the truth because he never lies. He saw that Saviour Balzan did not deny or contradict what Galea Curmi said, and that rather than making the story front page news on the next day’s edition of Malta Today, he pulled it completely so that there wasn’t even a word about it.
And yet Joseph Muscat went to Hal Ghaxaq and repeated Balzan’s abhorrent untruths about a man who went out of his way for him because his wife lay dying.
Saviour Balzan’s behaviour towards Edgar Galea Curmi is worse than a lie. It is taking a kindness that somebody has done to you and using it as a weapon with which to hurt them. There must be a special place in Purgatory for people who do such things.
As for Joseph Muscat, his thinking is fascist: destroy others with lies to help secure and sustain power. It is not surprising that Super One is a sort of fascist machine for the destruction of the Labour Party’s enemies, it is not surprising that Jason Micallef lied under oath to try and secure a judgement against me and in favour of Charlon Gouder, when the rot starts at the top.
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These sorts of meetings between journalists and politicians or their aides are not just normal, they are essential in a democracy. It is only in totalitarian regimes that journalists have no access to politicians and their aides. That is why it is only people with a strange mindset who think that it is ‘wrong’ or ‘odd’ for a journalist to meet a political aide to discuss the issues of the day.
For example, I used to meet and ring the Labour Party’s then secretary-general, Jimmy Magro, on a regular basis even while I was the then Labour leader’s fiercest critic. We had a cordial relationship, but I could never get past his successor’s stupidity, malice and worst of all, total absence of a sense of humour, which I always equate with low intelligence.
21 Comments Comment
Reply to Lomax Click here to cancel reply
A special place in hell, more likely! In theology Purgatory implies that the soul is destined for Heaven and is merely undergoing purification in anticipation of that.
Your articles are getting more and more hysterical Daphne. I cant imagine what state you’ll be in come next elections.
[Daphne – Actually I am perfectly calm and you can tell by the tone. It’s just that you don’t like the truth of what I’m saying here. I think hysterical would more aptly describe an Opposition leader who picks up and repeats the lies of an axe-grinding newspaper editor. Kemm trid tkun iddisprat?]
When we’re living in times where the party in government is crumbling to pieces and someone dedicates most of her stories on her ‘Running Notebook’ to accounts and canards about opposition members… well, I can’t help but ask myself WHY!
[Daphne – It’s probably because I’m fairly bright.]
Fairly, YES!
From the Times;
“B Attard
Yesterday, 14:32
JPO I admire your courage to come forward with such divorce Bill. I know it was not easy. We need politicians like you. KEEP IT UP. ”
lol. Kiwis anyone?
Wasn’t it Alfred Sant who said that ‘the end justifies the means’ ? Joseph Muscat is on the same course.
No, I think he said ‘the endless justifies the meaningless’ – but he wasn’t referring to this blog.
Actually it was Macchiavelli, but then again…
George, they (including Cyrus Engerer) think it was Evarist Bartolo who said that the more things change the more they stay the same.
http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/8/messages/679.html
Even the Brits, as I’ve no doubt you know, Ronnie, use the french ‘plu ca change . . . ‘ when speaking english. Evarist Rousseau perhaps?
Sorry, got that wrong. Seems it was Evarist Karr.
Whilst it is unfortunately certain that Muscat will be Malta’s next Prime Minister (brrrr), it is as much certain that he is busy and fast undoing his victory before he gets to Castille.
Unless Muscat obtains a comfortable majority he’s going to have a tough going – which is beyond him.
With all these machinations and cunning plans it’s all sounding a lot like a cheap islander version of Blackadder. Talk of TV shows, Labour should force its minions and wannabe pundits to watch reruns of The West Wing over and over until the terms due-process and rule of law take root somewhere in their heads.
And incidentally, the episodes were filled with conversations between journalists and everyone, from the Chief of Staff all the way down the White House staff hierarchy. How I miss that show.
It is still on every day on Melita More.
Blackadder? My God! Jason is straight from central casting as Lord Blackadder. He’s right in character.
“Joseph, your brain is too small for politics.”
EPIC. Quote of the Month.
“Now Muscat’s audience in Hal Ghaxaq are unlikely to be keen followers of any news other than that on Super One. They certainly do not read this blog (though you never know)”.
In the Ghaxaq MLP Club audience I think I spotted Dr Charlie Azzopardi, the family therapist whose is never without sunglasses on his head. I always had the impression that he is an outspoken Labour-leaning person, but I would be surprised if he goes again to listen to his leader.
I suppose he is another PL prospective candidate, another feather in the PL’s tattered and smelly hat.
He was roped in from the pro-divorce lobby by Muscat, I assume.
Jaqq, those sunglasses on his head. Totally chavtastic.What is that – the ‘family therapist look’?
I hate to think what you are going to be writing closer to the election!
Muscat is going to win the next election with a landslide majority.
So please calm down and relax, avoid this stress, it is bad for your health Daphne.
I may be naive but I have to say that I fear Joe Muscat even more than I feared Alfred Sant.
How can people stoop so low?
I remember Edgar Galea Curmi as a lecturer at University and I was always touched by his humanity – I do not recall his lectures but I do recall he used to lecture with love and humanity.
He is certainly a good man and I feel sad, and I am not being dramatic in any way, I feel sad when I realise that amorality and power-hunger will win the day in two years’ time. Only amorality can lead a person to behave in such an abhorrent manner.
This twisting of kind acts into daggers with which to stab the kind heart is (in my view) one of the lowest levels any person can stoop down to. This is basic human decency – being human requires that we do not act in this manner.