Not a case of mere Ole’ Ole’!

The party flags have been folded into a drawer and the ballot papers in Naxxar have been taken away to another room, all of us have returned to our every day routine and regular Sunday afternoon outing have equally ended. Yet, this election has definitely taught us something. We are not dumb. Through their votes, almost 93% of those eligible to vote have sent their message.

Students have been an indispensable asset for the Nationalist party. With dozens of young volunteers helping out and several hundreds attending the regular daily so-called Taht it-Tinda meetings and the mass meetings, students have made their voice heard by, very evidently siding with who really gave them the attention and the limelight. With 17, 000 young first-time voters, Jason Micallef and his clan ought to get a lesson or two from Joe Saliba on how to run a campaign. Mr. Micallef direct attacks have got you no where. When will you change learn? Will you make your party go through another electoral defeat to realise this?

The winds of change were blowing hard during the few weeks prior to the campaign. With Dr. Sant parading his ‘Pjan ghal Bidu Gdid’ and Dr. Gonzi promising new blood, irrespective for which party they voted, the electorate showed that it is time to bring new faces to the limelight. Dismally, this has seen valuable former members of parliament being shoved to the side. Were they incompetent at their job or did they have far too much on their plate to bother with coffee mornings and countless house visits? An analysis of the result seems to indicate that those who had the largest portfolios struggled with being elected, if at all? How could someone like Austin Gatt get elected at the 18^th count or Louis Galea, Michael Frendo and Helen D’Amato fail to make it at all? Unfortunately, the Maltese seems to cling on firmly to clientelism and as much as they complain about it, they just won’t let go of it. Shame on us.

Negative campaigning seems to work wonders with the electorate, fortunately not with Dr. Gonzi who was careful in not choosing Cabinet members in terms of electoral support but rather based on what he deemed them as being more fit for. Hopefully, Dolores Cristina will be gracing Students’ House with her presence to discuss policies with members of the student organisations. This former educator has shown to be very competent as Minister for Family and Social Solidarity, let’s hope for the best for the next five years! As for the Malta Labour Party, Carmelo Abela has always shown his willingness to attend activities on campus, one can only hope that this election serves the MLP a lesson and either Dr Abela or the successive Education shadow minister is all ears to hear our complaints and proposals.

Politics does not take place once every year. Politics is what ensures we have lectures, have stipends and can attend University. Our duty is not merely to cast our vote when called at the polls. Our duty is to come forward with suggestions and make our own politics to remove what is stagnant and upsetting in an attempt to move forward. We must not care only about getting our stipends in our pockets but about ensuring that our needs are not at the mercy of those hierarchically above us but we are able to obtaining by doing.