Have you ever wondered what became of the girl-next-door in the ‘Ded, jien ha nivvota Labour’ campaign video?

Mario Philip Azzopardi – the ‘Franco Debono of the theatrical world’ – is back in the news again. Which caused me to reminisce about his truly cynical Labour Party electoral campaign videos three years ago, in a ‘where are they now’ sort of way. Do you remember the two ‘acqua e sapone’ girl-next-door types in his famous Courage To Vote video? Of course you do.

Well, one of them is now comfortably installed in London as the daughter of Malta’s High Commissioner (that was the skinny one who said nothing). And here’s the other one, the one who yelled and protested and fought with her plain old boring nerdy (Nationalist) mother about how she was going to vote Labour for the common good, while being silently backed up by her cool, young, good-looking (Labour) father. “DED, I’M SORRY. LE TA, I’M NOT SORRY. I’M QUITE PROUT OF IT EKCHWILLY. JIEN HA NIVVOTA LABOUR!”

Her name is Floren Sultana, and she’s about as far from being a girl-next-door with serious politics on her mind as it is possible to be (see below). Yes, I know you won’t believe me, that it’s hard to believe it’s the same one, that they don’t even look alike, but you’re going to have to believe it, because it’s true. Once you remove the thick make-up, the false eyelashes, the hair extensions and replace the ridiculous clothes and shoes with jeans and a shirt, it’s her all right. And that’s her real mother with her, Odette Goodlip, who is as far from the ‘Courage To Vote’ mother as it is possible to get. Her boyfriend, seen with her in the pictures, is Dylon Dimech. She may look like she’s dating a sugar-daddy, because he looks like my contemporary, but he’s actually just 30 – another fact you will find hard to believe.

Floren Sultana’s sort-of-step-father (her mother isn’t actually married to him) is former Valletta FC footballer and denizen tal-Belt, Darren Debono. They own Scoglitti restaurant down at Marsamxett, which is why it is the Valletta restaurant of choice for Labour ministers, the Taghna Lkoll crowd and people like Franco Debono.

And once more, the Labour Party has shown how few qualms it has about being closely linked to those with a criminal record or whose behaviour is seriously questionable. Darren Debono is currently on bail as he is being prosecuted for illegal tuna fishing. He also has a criminal record for stealing a refrigerated trailer and for under-declaring fish catches on at least six occasions. American journalist Ann Marlowe has also written an in-depth piece which links Debono’s activities to smuggling of diesel, weapons and cigarettes via Libya. Her work is summarised here.

Marlowe’s piece for the Asia Times is here.