My sister is a simple school cleaner ‘purtinara’. You can imagine the sort of people that do these jobs.he gets lots aggro from nasty ‘hodor’ LP supporters. They make her life a misery.

@Karl Borg

It all boils down to the politician’s vision and ability to decipher what is in Malta’s best interest.

Mintoff’s vision was to discourage the introduction of computers on the workplace because it would result in JOB LOSSES.

The vision of the various PN governments since 1987 was that computers will increase efficiency and make us more competitive. The introduction and promotion of computers will result in JOB CREATION.

Mintoff and MLP were not able to see beyond the tip of their noses.

The PN were forward looking and consistently had a vision for Malta’s economic and social progress. More crucially the PN in government worked and invested to bring that vision to fruition.

[Daphne – Room-size computers! This is the 1980s we are talking about, Karl, not the 1960s.]

Grezz, colour TVs were not banned. They were in Malta, being sold by friends of friends or barunijiet (but of course internal friends of the Malta Labour Party) to who could pay in Liri Maltin. The social heart of the Labour Party.

Then again, there are those who will glorify Mintoff till long after he’s rotted away, judging by the comments here – http://www.maltastar.com/pages/r1/ms10dart.asp?a=19645 .

Grezz,

naqbel mieghek 100%. Kont trid taghmel weghda biex ikollok bicca computer dak iz-zmiem.

Lomax,

The mentality you refer to is as strong as ever within Labour. They witnessed Sant’s debacle in 1997 and chose to keep quiet in the run up to the EU referendum. Rest assured that even Labour MP’s voted in favour of EU membership.

Have you noticed how the Labour media tries to instigate discord in the PN, misquoting MP’s and written statements?

Biex tkun taf kemm huma kattivi u njuranti l-Laburisti, trid tahdem go xi dipartiment maghhom. Jiena kont ninnota li kattivi anke ma dawk il-laburisti li ma jaghmlux parti minn klikka. Ghax dawk tal-klikek ma jista ghalihom hadd.

And you know what? Even PL diehards know this and implicitlly acknowledge it.

On FB I have taken a sharp and open stand against Franco Debono. A Labour acquaintance called me and shamelessly told me: mhux ahjar ma tikxifx x’int? Jekk jitla’ l-Labour taf iddur kontrik.

He was not threatening me. His was a genuine concern. I didn’t give two hoots. But the implications of this incident hit me as very significant and telling.

So my last reflection: Do labour supporters (the sharper ones) realise that the way of life we have now is exclusively dependent on whether we have a PN governnent or otherwise?

[Daphne – I get that ALL the time.]

Let us not forget that many are still afraid because many (though, I fear, not enough) know that Labour is still the same. Why are people afraid to talk? Because they are afraid of Labour’s eventual return to power.

I wouldn’t use a nom-de-plume otherwise and I know many others wouldn’t.

Which brings me to another cold realisation: have these past 20-odd years (bar a couple) been a reprieve from what life really is in Malta? Has the peace of mind, which has reogned for all these years, really been an “Awakening” (as employed in the famous movie?) hence a period, fleeting and chimerical, which is so fragile that come next election, will evaporate?

When I step back and look at the situation objectively, I see that this is all a dream, this well-being, this getting-on-with-our-lives-serenely is dependent on whether we are asleep or otherwise, figuratively speaking. One day we will wake up and our re-awakening will not be pleasant.

Sometimes I feel it is like the PN is trying to hold back the tide and the natural order of things in Malt is life under Labour lived in fear and misery.

Fact is many are still afraid. Perhaps, like me, they know that we are merely living a truce and, given a chance, Labour would start turning the clock back.

Think about 1996. Now, 16 years later, I am deeply surprised (only now it hit me) that a mere 9 years after 1987, Labour was re-elected. And, soon enough, the demons came back to haunt us.

No, it is clearer now more than ever that currently, the PL is worse than 10 years ago and they will show their true colours once they are elected.

Yes people are still afraid, and I daresay, justly so.