Moral guidance for everyone

Following parliament’s unanimous approval of the next president of the republic, questions like ‘What makes a good president?’ or ‘How should a president act?’ start to come to mind. Fortunately, one can visualise such questions thanks to the latest satirical drama called Il-President, currently available to view on GO TV’s TOKIS streaming platform.

Led by Pierre Portelli and his team, the show interprets the life of Peppi Azzopardi as the new president of Malta, with all of his mannerisms, character and, above all, his constant plea for social justice.

Il-President tackles several sociopolitical issues, which are both pertinent and critical in contemporary society. For instance, issues of poverty, injustice, equality, gender rights, civil disobedience, sustainable environment, political ethics, power, social reforms and education. In other words, each episode presents these issues in a satirical, comical but, above all, applicable manner.

Fabian Scerri de Carlo as Peppi Azzopardi in Il-President

Azzopardi, a very well-known figure across Maltese generations, is depicted as a president who does not shy away from his philosophy. ‘His excellence’ (or Peppi, as he liked to be referred to in the series), constantly challenges the status quo with his views and decisions. These are not always taken on board by the political parties and other stakeholders; yet, Peppi manages to stay true to his word, despite the limitations of his presidential tenure. For example, he faces dissent from political parties on the disapproval of a national metro project, the opening of a mental health hospital and the rescue of migrants, among others.

In Malta, these issues also enter the scene from time to time; especially the latter.

Apart from the typical quarrels between the government and the opposition parties, the show also introduces another political party – Ġens Wieħed – a far-right party with a strong ideology against foreigners. This party is headed by Simone Ancilleri, a populist leader who regularly clashes with the other political parties and the president over migration policies and issues.

On the other hand, Il-President also gives space to activist groups and civil disobedience such as Klima; a pro-environment movement, which is persistent in its beliefs against climate change.

Further, various stakeholders in the show are seen lobbying their political intentions to the political parties or with the president himself. Moreover, one can carefully contextualise all of these portrayals as they represent the political climate of contemporary Malta.

Satire is dispersed throughout this series. For example, the power dynamics between the government and the opposition, between ministries and ministers, between entities and lobby groups and also between foreign affairs make Il-President a witty tongue-in-cheek.

The use of satire and other intimations is critical for such a narrative. This show carefully mirrors the Maltese imaginary and its sociopolitics, in which one can easily connect and reflect on present affairs. Thanks to Portelli’s interpretation of Azzopardi, the audience is reminded of the importance of social justice and ethics for good governance and society – and of how a noble politician should be.

In 2024, the new president of Malta will have a lot of things waiting on the presidential plate, issues of mental health, poverty, warfare and neutrality, education, quality of life and environmental sustainability, to name a few.

By adopting a strong and active stance towards social justice, the next president can start serving as moral guidance to everyone, reminding Malta and its people that, with goodwill, there are still things worth fighting for to make this country a better place for everyone – Malti (Maltese) or barrani (foreigner).

Luke Fenech – Mosta