Eddie and local councils

Wednesday, March 3 was an emotional roller coaster for those of us who have the Nationalist Party at heart and who have grown within the party. I personally knew no other leader but Eddie Fenech Adami. When he was elected I was only nine years old and, obviously, I have no recollection of that momentous event. Some years later, in my early teens, I started to work within the PN and I have grown through the ranks inspired by this great leader. It was therefore a day of great sadness for me to see the man who has given so much to the party and to the nation let go of the helm.

March 3 means a new beginning - not only that of life after Dr Fenech Adami but a new leadership in the person of Lawrence Gonzi. He is not new to the party and to the country and has proven to all of us that he has what it takes to lead us into the first steps of EU membership.

The end of the Fenech Adami era is only comforted by the fact that the party has elected another leader with sound principles and who inspires trust.

The Fenech Adami era - there is so much to reflect about, write about and comment about. He has led a party which was the victim of intolerance and injustice and piloted our country into the land of opportunity. A lot of emphasis has been laid on the dark ages of the political climate of the 1970s and 1980s and to the fact that he managed to turn around a country with a bleak economy to become a member of the European Union.

I feel that not a lot of mention or emphasis has been given to the fact that he inspired the creation of local democracy. Dr Fenech Adami would not have been criticised had his government not fulfilled an electoral promise to set up local councils. Unlike other European countries Malta did not share a culture of local government. Our size and political mentality would have justified him for shelving the project. But the fact that Dr Fenech Adami took the bull by the horns and pushed for the setting up of local councils and for their success should be celebrated with more fanfare.

The Local Councils Bill was presented in parliament in 1993, just six year after the Nationalist Party took charge of a divided country, where power was controlled by a handful of individuals. Gradually this was being changed by the setting up of authorities that were independent from the will of ministers.

The creation of local councils meant that elections were to be held in 67 localities and not all were Nationalist-dominated. With Dr Fenech Adami's trust in the people, he was not only stripping certain responsibilities from ministries but also forcing them to work with Labour-controlled councils. When the list of localities were drawn up, and which included Cospicua, Senglea and Zejtun as examples, I am sure Dr Fenech Adami was not disillusioned that the Nationalists would find it next to impossible to elect a majority. Therefore, what he actually did was to introduce a form of power sharing, a notion which Labour felt uncomfortable with even during their short spell of government between 1996 and 1998.

Today we take local council politics for granted. We play the game as though we have been playing it for decades and rarely do we look back and reflect on what a great catalyst was created. The 10-year road of local councils may have been bumpy but it exists and it is up to us to make it an even bigger success.

Therefore, a big thank you to Dr Fenech Adami would also be befitting.

Dr Mifsud is president, College of Nationalist Party Councillor