Martin Scicluna on Franco Debono (2)
In The Malta Independent on Sunday, last Sunday:
Although it may be thought that the first responsibility of a Member of Parliament is to pursue the grievances of his constituents and to highlight their needs through direct access to ministers, under our system (and the Westminster model generally) party loyalty and loyalty to the party whip is seen as the overriding duty. Certainly, to read the writings of Nationalist Party die-hards there can be little doubt about this.
By all accounts, Franco Debono is a good constituency MP, close to the concerns of his constituents as his interventions on the public transport debacle and the swingeing increases in the water and electricity rates attest. He is also clearly liked by his constituents for it is unlikely he would have displaced the outstanding Louis Galea in his district in the last election.
It is when we move into the area of party loyalty, personal ambition and conscience that the picture becomes murky. The Member of Parliament is meant to be the obedient servant of the party machine. He is expected to tramp into the division lobby voting for or against a subject on the say-so of the party whip. He is not expected to demur at the party line. Loyalty to the party is expected to trump all else.
But this – as we have seen throughout the term of this Parliament – becomes more difficult when the government holds only a one-seat majority. It is made far worse when the Prime Minister is faced – as he has been throughout this Parliament – by a sizeable minority of members who appear, for whatever reason, to be disaffected and dissatisfied with his leadership and whose aspirations and personal ambitions have not been fulfilled.
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“a sizeable minority of members who appear, for whatever reason, to be disaffected and dissatisfied with his leadership and whose aspirations and personal ambitions have not been fulfilled.”
The disaffection and dissatisfaction is their unfulfilled aspirations and personal ambitions.
Sorry Mr Scicluna, I for one voted for Franco because I did not want to elect Louis or Ninu. I worked for them always senza interessi, and not only that they usually used to reward others (no need to explain – we are Maltese).
Franco close to his constituents? Well, that’s a real joke. In four years I never saw him in our village. Not once did he attend any activity, never entered our bandclub (we have two band clubs), on any occasion whatever.
The only time I saw him at PN club Zurrieq he was making a fuss because he did not want other prospective party candidates to attend. He never answers his mobile, but then he said recently that he does not want his parliamentary seat (“nitnejjek mis-siggu”).