Joseph Cuschieri: a man of principle with a firm backbone, who isn’t at all easy to manipulate and twist round your little finger

Published: April 12, 2014 at 5:04am

Joseph Cuscheri_backbone

Joseph Cuschieri, who has been ranting and raving about how he is not going to stand for re-election to the European Parliament because the Labour Party has already chosen the winners, has changed his mind again and has said that he has “an open channel of communication with the prime minister”.

One should hope so, given that the only reason the prime minister became Opposition leader in the first place is because he was able to manipulate this sucker into relinquishing his seat in the Maltese parliament.

Cuschieri is getting married soon. He has uploaded photographs on Facebook showing him proudly displaying his Cana course certificate. His wife has got herself a luckier catch than we thought at first. Whenever he says no to something, however firmly and however much he rants and raves, all she has to do is whip off her pants and she’s got herself a yes.




41 Comments Comment

  1. P Shaw says:

    Kummiedja wara l-ohra.

  2. Fenominali says:

    That is exactly what I thought, Daphne. For some politicians such as Joseph Cuschieri, it is easy to change his mind, his hearth, his principles. In a few days, it seems that also “il-magna tal-Partit Laburista” has changed, which will make him a winner.

    Excuse me? Is this the way a politician is “made”?

    How dirty politics can be. It really paid Joseph Cuschieri to go on TV ranting about his party and their attitude in sidelining him. Part of the game, no doubt.

    And why he did this? Not for those poor Maltese needing his services as an MEP, but for the PL and their dream of another “rebha Laburista”. Politics for wrong reasons and with priorities turned upside down.

  3. canon says:

    Fih ragel ta’ kelmtu ukoll.

    • What? says:

      Imma ghaliex qed tiskanta? Ara 1. kemm intqal gideb mil PM u shabu 2. Kemm kien u-turns. Dawk mhux irgiel . No Balls.

  4. Sister Ray says:

    Wedding vows coming up.

  5. Tabatha White says:

    Face-saving doesn’t mean vote catching.

    No bird in hand and an empty basket is a risk without much of a comfort zone, for all that was given up.

    .

  6. Francis Saliba M.D. says:

    What about the durability of the “Yes I do” exchanged during the marriage ceremony?
    Never mind we have got divorce now!
    Ain’t we lucky!

  7. Osservatore says:

    If I called him a pussy, would he jump? And if he fails to do so, what will he do thereafter?

    Wait tables again?

    He is living proof of the mediocrity of the Partit Laburista, its non-existent standards and its instinct to vote like sheep.

    Perhaps you are right, pussy-whipped is more like it. After all, I doubt that he’d get much opportunity to get any, so once he does, he jumps at her command.

  8. Fgura says:

    Judging from the timing, can it be that he made sure to get the Enemalta chairmanship should it be vacated by Charles Mangion and his probable failure to be re-elected?

  9. Frankie's Barrage says:

    https://www.facebook.com/sciberras.n.joseph/posts/696236203751433

    Did anyone read this rant by Luciano Busuttil. His democratic credentials are seriously lacking.

  10. follower says:

    Laburist ta’ veru b’qalb mintoffjana b’kelma ta’ ragel.

  11. Peter says:

    I think that you’re missing half the story. More worryingly this episode demonstrates a lack of leadership by the PM. One outburst from this MEP and Joseph Muscat was forced to change his plans in order to appease him.

  12. Manuel says:

    I wonder what his iced-bun is. We will have to wait and see. I am sure Jo ta’ Kastilja promised him something huge.

  13. curious says:

    Is Jo still the leader of the PL?

    “It was the Prime Minister who encouraged Joseph Cuschieri to change his mind and contest the European Parliament election, just three days after the MEP accused the Labour Party of unfairly pushing other candidates.” (Times of Malta)

    While the Labour Party is unfair, Jo is the hero and encourages Cuschieri to work for another win for Labour.

    Dejjem johrog ifuh Jo.

  14. pablo says:

    Ever since JPO and Frankie Debono showed them how to do it, every Labourite is doing it. Min ma jibkix ma jerdax

  15. P.Zammit says:

    Never did it cross my mind that he was not going to contest. He did it all for publicity because he is lagging in popularity vs the others.

  16. J Mamo says:

    kummidjant

  17. bob-a-job says:

    How about Cuschieri tells us:-

    a) Who the original 3 candidates being pushed by Labour were.

    b) Which of those candidates has now been relegated to the losing team so he can take that place

    and finally

    c) He speaks about 3 candidates which leads one to assume that Labour have already concluded that their share of MEPs will be going down from 4 to 3.

  18. Clueless says:

    It’s interesting that he disclosed Labour’s target of three seats as opposed to their current four.

  19. M. Cassar says:

    It is no wonder that so many go through life with their eyes, ears and noses closed. Having one’s eyes open and watching all these ‘principled’ people is scary.

  20. Jozef says:

    Cuschieri and the iron lady.

  21. ciccio says:

    Meanwhile, this dangerous politician is still going on about “the one size fits all,” the “united front in the EU,” and the usual divisive politics, applied at EU level. Clearly, a visionary he is not. He cannot see the ‘whole picture’ and be happy with it. He sees things only in parts. It is precisely this type of thinking which leads to disfunctionality in the EU.

    With Labour, we must always be fighting a holy war: in Mintoff’s time, it was against the “barrani,” the “sinjuri,” and the “Kurja u l-Vatikan.” Now it’s the EU.

    Thing is, those who will vote for him have no clue what he is talking about, and do not give a fig about the EU. They are told they should vote for Alfred Sant, and that is what they will be doing.

    http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-04-12/news/malta-needs-united-front-in-eu-alfred-sant-4603445248/

    So, what are Dr. Sant’s solutions? What is his vision? At his age and stage in life, he should be able to do more than criticise the EU.

  22. Saviour says:

    The man is a clown. And that’s not libel.

  23. Steve says:

    These last thirteen months have been the most eventful thirteen months since 1987 for the wrong reasons.

    It would be interesting to learn about something, even one thing, that this government has done which is or would be beneficial for Malta.

  24. Augustus says:

    I wonder what is it with these people in the PL. One day they say one thing, the day after they say the opposite, e.g. Adrian Vassallo, Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, Anglu Farrugia, Joseph Cuschieri, the man who wrote on Facebook about Silvio Parnis and the vanishing of the money collected during a TV programme.

    These are that I can remember, I’m sure that there are others who want to voice their opinion but are afraid to do so.

    My question is, are these people being threatened?

    [Daphne – I think you will find that it is because they have not taken a stand on a matter of principle, but are sulking because they haven’t got what they want in terms of attention or privileges. Once they get what they want, or are promised something else, they simply stop sulking. There are no principles involved, so therefore no principles to climb down from.]

    • curious says:

      Don’t you know that his credibility was not affected?

      That is what Joseph Cuschieri believes and what he told us but it is not for him to say.

  25. edgar says:

    Suldat tal-azzar.. Who is this lucky woman who managed to grab him for her husband.

  26. Harry Purdie says:

    I have yet to see a photo of him without that stupid grin.

  27. Peter Bloom says:

    Speaking of spines, guts, principles and all that, where were our Members of Parliament (PL and PN) who sit on the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe at the recent vote suspending Russia’s voting rights in Strasbourg?

    http://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/Votes/DB-VotesResults-EN.asp?VoteID=35016&DocID=15085&MemberID=&Sort=2

  28. Katarin says:

    He didn’t really mean it when he said he was not contesting, blah, blah. Kliem fil vojt biex jattira l-attenzjoni.

    With this government the inside people who start kicking up a fuss get a special bun delivery. So who knows what was said and promised?

  29. cincinnatus says:

    “il-partit jigi qabel kollox” said Cuschieri outside Evans building.

    I ask myself: Is this guy going to represent us Maltese European citizens in the European Parliament or his party?

    Do people know what the European Parliament is and what it stands for? Are they aware what a mere six MEPs, even if they had to be united in their efforts, can do?

  30. Jozef says:

    http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/37947/_meps_candidature_exposes_rift_between_cuschieri_brothers

    ‘…The Sunday newspaper reveals that Joseph Cuschieri’s u-turn was endorsed by the prime minister to secure the votes of the Labour faithful as a quarter of Labourites – a MaltaToday survey had revealed – are not expected to vote in the forthcoming elections.
    However, judging by his Facebook post, Joseph Cuschieri’s brother, Manuel, would not be among the Labour MEP’s voters.
    Instead, Illum reveals, Joseph Cuschieri’s brother would be endorsing the candidature of Alfred Sant…..’

    Muscat may have a bit of a problem with his MEP contingent, Sant will definitely be elected, his position on the eurozone clear, membership an ideological stand.

    The PN to go for the fourth seat. Time to settle some strategy, pragmatic avoidance of wasted votes.

    Labour would not be able to survive in the PES with an Alfred Sant the compulsory choice of head of delegation.

    In the end, contradictions come to a head.

  31. Joe Fenech says:

    He’s what in cockney slang one would call a big oil-tanker.

    • H.P. Baxxter says:

      Muscat is the captain of our ship,
      of our ship!
      Muscat is the captain of our ship,
      of our ship!
      The ship is a tanker…

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