Some observations about last night, bearing in mind that I missed it
What was Labour thinking last night? And then when I say that Labour is crazy, some people think it’s because I’m prejudiced. No. It’s because I’m rational.
So I missed seeing all the mad scenes on television last night, but en route to supper was besieged by telephone calls and text messages keeping me posted.
The first one came in as I walked out through the door. ‘LABOUR SENT FRANCO DEBONO TO XARABANK INSTEAD OF ANGLU FARRUGIA’.
What?
From there to Valletta, it was crazy, so thank heavens I wasn’t the one driving.
‘SIMON SAYS HE WILL WAIT FOR ANGLU TO TURN UP AND IF HE DOES NOT THEN HE’S LEAVING’.
Yes, that’s the way to handle it. There’s a hierarchy here: the deputy leader faces his opposite number, just as the prime minister faces off with the leader of the Opposition, not with some random backbencher.
And that’s quite apart from the fact that politicians are expected to stick to an agreement not divvy about with circus acts and childish games.
‘XARABANK HAS BEEN CANCELLED.’
Bloody hell. Typical Labour – absolutely no respect for or concern about other people’s time, effort and money. The producers have spent countless man-hours working on that show, the advertising has been sold and advertisers have selected and scheduled their ads. Now none of it has gone out and so none of it will be paid for, which means that this week’s production costs are not covered and that a team of people will have to be assigned to transferring contracts to whichever date Anglu Farrugia decides is suitable for him to turn up.
And TVM was left with a a prime-time hole to fill on a Friday night. So Labour, so very Labour.
‘FRANCO IS BEING SHOWN SCREAMING AND SHOUTING IN STUDIO AFTER BEING TOLD THAT SIMON HAS WALKED OUT. MY GOD THE MAN IS TOTALLY WIRED.’
Well, you know, I always said that a man like that must be hell to live with, and that it’s no wonder nobody lives with him except those who brought him into the world.
‘HE IS SHOUTING AND SCREAMING ABOUT HOW MUCH HE HAS SUFFERED AND HOW HE HAS BEEN SUBJECTED TO ATTAKKI FEROCI U BLA HNIENA’
Yawn. Narcissism and persecution mania. And then they wonder why he’s on the shelf at 40.
‘LABOUR HAS RELEASED A STATEMENT DEFENDING ITS POSITION AND SUPER ONE IS GOING NUTS TRYING TO JUSTIFY THIS STUNT THAT’S BLOWN UP IN ITS FACE.’
Not surprised – I always said that Labour’s biggest problem is that it isn’t fit for purpose and that this situation is made worse by the fact that its current boss still has the forma mentis of the Super One reporter which he was for so many years. Muscat doesn’t think like a political leader and embryonic prime minister. He thinks like a Super One reporter: “Wow, this is a great idea. What a fantastic, headline-grabbing stunt.” Then it blows up in his face.
Shouldn’t it have been obvious to Labour that if the agreement was that the two deputy leaders would face off with each other, then if their deputy leader failed to turn up, the other deputy leader would go home?
This is not a wrestling match – you don’t send in a substitute, and what’s more, a substitute who is not even a member of your party, still less elected on your party ticket.
The Labour Party’s insight into human psychology is so poor that they couldn’t even work out how the audience would react and how the calm, rational and totally self-controlled Simon Busuttil – who is hyper-aware of protocol and procedure – would handle it.
This morning, I watched the videos on timesofmalta.com. A Super One reporter tried to suggest that Busuttil walked out rather than face Debono – which is ridiculous, as I can’t think of a better man to face down that hysterical person than a calm and rational one like Busuttil.
Busuttil didn’t even mention Debono – obviously, as he is not a factor in the equation – and made it clear that he was walking out because his opponent in the debate hadn’t turned up for the umpteenth time.
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Reply to Yanika Click here to cancel reply
Yes, yes, yes. It seems that the soap opera for the next election has opened up with a wonderfully entertaining sequence. The opening music leaves a lot to be desired. But the entertainment is great. Eat your heart out South America, no one down there could come up with such a script and opening scene. Would there be a sequel?
To all those comparing this night’s show with the JPO-Sant show on the eve of the 2008 elections, I’m refreshing everyone’s memories:
2008 – There was no debate planned for that day, it was a question and answer session between Sant and journalists (with JPO presenting himself as a journalist).
2012 – This should have been a debate between Busuttil and Farrugia, but Farrugia simply chickened out (just as Sant did in 2008, this time three times in a row!).
2008 – JPO was publicly viewed as a genuine politician AT THE TIME (with particular emphasis on these last three words).
2012 – Frankie Tabone is now being publicly viewed as one who constantly needs the tranquilliser needle.
2008 – JPO was AT THE TIME viewed as an upcoming PN politician.
2012 – Tabone is now showing his true colours, possibly confirming that he has been a Laborist since Day 1 and a “wicc-b’iehor” all throughout (a characteristic which does not go down well with the Maltese voter).
2008 – PN had checkmated MLP in its final move prior to the election.
2012 – MLP tried to emulate the 2008 PN move but failed miserably, possibly shooting at its own feet.
Only one thing remains constant:
2008 – The incompetence of MLP to master the situation simply leads the voter to think “How can I leave the country in these people’s hands?”
2012 – MLP is again unable to master the situation again – it simply does not seem to realise that parading characters like Dalli, Mugliett, JPO, Nikki Dimech, Farrugia Sacco and Frankie Tabone will simply work against it!
The comparison between what happened yesterday and the JPO-Dr. Sant face-off during the Dr. Sant press conference of 2008 is a non-starter. If Labour is doing that comparison, it clearly cannot read a situation.
Dr. Sant’s press conference before the 2008 elections was organised by the Broadcasting Authority.
And clearly, Dr. Sant had no say in who would attend from the press. It was a matter for the Authority to decide.
How could the Authority allow Dr. Sant the right to decide who would question him in an electoral press conference forming part of the electoral broadcasts?
And the Authority had decided in favour of JPO’s presence in the program.
Yesterday’s was a debate, planned in advance, in which Labour committed itself to sending its Deputy Leader, not just any unknown candidate, to face the new deputy leader of the other main party. And this was being organised by a commercial contractor of the public broadcaster.
Imagine something like this happened in the US during the debate between Joe Biden and Paul Ryan.
Labour has totally messed up, big time.
Mesmes, you are wrong about the dates. It should read
1972-2013 – The incompetence of MLP to master the situation simply leads the voter to think “How can I leave the country in these people’s hands?”
The most astounding thing was watching Coconut Kurt squirming on OneTV trying to justify what had happened. Brought back memories of Dardir Malta.
Yes Daphne, you really missed this part. It was the most entertaining: the PL, he said, would accept a Xarabank debate between Simon Busuttil and Anglu Farrugia on Saturday as long as it is also transmitted live on ONE, and with a presenter, any presenter as long as it’s not Peppi.
What arrogance!
‘any presenter as long as it’s not Peppi’, yes but Dr Muscat did not object to Peppi previously. Why now?
They wanted someone neutral and they suggested Andrew Azzopardi (have no clue about him), Godfrey Grima and Saviour Balzan…like they’re neutral.
Franco keeps saying he s a true NATIONALIST and after yesterday’s farce I honestly believe him, because he’s dealt Labour the worst PR disaster in years.
Xarabank is Peppi so expecting someone else to chair is just too silly for words.
But Simon only wants to play “home” where he knows the referee will give him all the help necessary !
Kindly do not offend coconuts. They are extremely useful fruit.
Absolutely hilarious, there he was on a high stool, tight fitting jacket, cuffs half his forearm’s length, setting the Labour agenda.
I thought this was a politcal party brimming with proposals, guidelines, principles and whatnot, why would they resort to their communications officer? Where’s the substance and sense of duty to their own work?
Peppi looked shaken by Kurt’s double dealing.
Just in case you missed the farce, there are some clips here of the Irrelevant One on a rampage:
http://tvm.com.mt/news/partit-laburista-give-franco-debono-their-time-on-xarabank/
And here’s calm and collected Simon giving a LP hack a lesson in manners:
http://tvm.com.mt/news/simon-busuttil-says-pl-was-afraid-of-xarabanks-debate/
Who is that parrot who keeps repeating “Bzajt minn Franco Debono,” and who is her master?
My goodness that journalist should be ashamed of herself. Or was it a talking walking robot perhaps?
Aaaa, the journalists are “cowurds”. You look into this man’s eyes and you say to yourself ‘something’s not quite right with his brain.’
Another point of view: Perhaps Franco Debono will be the best thing that may have happened to the PN.
Let’s say that until after the elections. As much as I would like to agree with you…
So watch Franco this evening on Bla Agenda replying to Simon, since Simon is so scared of him that he will never accept to face this PN MP !
If you believe that Simon is afraid of Frankie, no wonder you’ve swallowed all the lies fed to you over your entire life by the PL.
Can’t you understand that the PN is punishing the rat where it hurts the most – by ignoring him, by labelling him as ‘irrelevant’ and him being a ‘closed case’.
I don’t know where Frankie intends to reside from now on, but he’s been sent to Coventry by the party he betrayed. And may he long stay there.
Sur Eddy, you and the Labour Party are more than welcome to pick up the garbage which the Nationalist Party throws up – your skip keeps getting bigger
.
Re-the row raised by the Barge-In-and-Hurl-Insults nonentity.
To adapt a famous pronouncement:
“never, in the history of political endeavour, has so much mirth (and annoyance) been afforded to so many by so few, and mostly malfunctioning, grey cells”.
Thanks to their bungling, Labour have turned a routine short political debate into a major event. Somehow, I don’t think that was their intention.
It was pitiful watching Debono last night.
He has either been promised something big come March or else he has had it. Really and truly.
He reduced himself to a laughing-stock, no more no less.
As for the position of the PL in this farce I am not surprised at all.
We can only expect more of the same from a party of incompetents run by bumbling idiots.
But I am quite sure that Simon Busuttil is not afraid as he is a born leader and this is being indicated during these past six years. But in my opinion that MLP reporter [Romana Attard] is not educated at all.
Therefore she surely needs some further press attitude educational on how to respect others when making a press release by not speaking when he was still give his report or unless she is asked to make her question, yet she not only used pressure on Simon, but molested him and that gave her a bad image.
How can one accept the MLP to come now as to dictate on the PBS who takes part and especially when he was not part or the deputy leader of the Party and especially when the programme was already agreed between Kurt Farrugia, the Director Information Officer and Peppi on behalf of the PBS who was hosting the programme Xarabank.
Yet when it was already planned to be between Simon and Angelo how cannot one be replace with someone else who is not even a representative of the MLP. [Din kienet kummidja laburista fejn saret hafna hsara lill votanti futuri tal MLP, fejn issa qedin jahsbuwa!!!]
Good to note that on that day, even Peppi reported on the PBS that he was going to permit FD to have his voice heard, but they could not take the place of Angelo Farrugia who is the Deputy Leader of Labour Party, so the discussion which was between the two deputy leaders, could not be altered.
If this is the system that they intend to proceed within these coming months and as the future Government, then the floating voters must from now do realize of the bad situation and the system that Malta that they might be facing us with ?
This is only a small bright light warning of what we might be faced with !!!!
John, I agree with your sentiment but please brush up on your writing skills.
Which part of ‘irrelevant’ does Frankie Demel not understand?
‘jistahbu fil-kamra qishom tal Form 2’
I think we need to study very closely what happened to Franco that year at St Aloysius, looks like it was a highlight of sorts.
I’m getting this horrible feeling that Franco Debono will suddenly appear out of nowhere wherever I go, wearing any one of a number of hats.
Will he be at church tomorrow dressed in a priest’s garb or will he be dressed as a friendly sales assistant next Monday?
How many hats does he wear?
Yesterday he wore that of the deputy leader of the opposition.
And who are the famous “they” who tell Anglu Farrugia when he can and cannot appear on TV?
I thought being a deputy leader meant being just that. You lead even if in the deputy position.
You do not have your strings pulled by a master puppeteer.
Yesterday was a real debacle – I’m sorry to say, on all sides concerned.
PBS should have been down there debating with Franco Debono as to why he had no right to appear on a programme which did not have his name on it.
Franco does not have the right to tell me what I can watch on Friday evening.
As I said earlier, I don’t know where I expect him to turn up next, next week.
Sorry. that should have read ‘a programme which did not have HIS name on it.’
My god he is like a pathetic woman throwing a hissy fit or like a two year old throwing a tantrum. The guy needs a bollocking, or time out on the naughty step.
1. You cannot be invited to a debate, accept that invitation, and then send somebody else along as a surprise of evil intent.
2. The Broadcasting authority brought this situation about with its complete lack of foresight and common sense in dictating that parties can choose their own representatives on TV shows.
3. It doesn’t say much about Labour’s intelligence if they thought the show would go on with Franco and Simon. What were they thinking?
4. It is obvious from all that shouting and crazy behaviour that Franco Debono has now completely lost it and seems to want to ruin even his career as a lawyer.
5. I think this was their idea of payback for that Jeffrey/Alfred Sant/PBS/Peppi Azzopardi stunt back in the 2008 general election campaign.
6. Labour needs to learn that attacking the press and broadcasters is not the best idea if you are a political party and need them on your side, or at least able to see your point of view.
7. Is there some course credit at the University of Malta, in how to be rude and aggressive instead of getting your way through charm and good manners?