Postman's knock

A cursory glance at the letter former Labour leader, Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, sent to all delegates of the Malta Labour Party General Conference - as reproduced in the PN newspapers over the last weekend - confirms that KMB has still not caught up either with e-mail or word processing.

Obviously, he still believes that an old-fashioned typewriter is equally effective. I assume, therefore, that rather than using a courier service, KMB sent his letter via the postman - sorry, postperson. Postman's knock, after all, is a party game!

I am sure many insist that the value of the message is in what it says and not in how it is said or how it is delivered. And yet, I dare say, the method and style of KMB's letter reflect also the mentality behind the message.

Even though it was a typical example of KMB logic, the message was as simple as possible - until the April 12 election, the MLP believed that there are more disadvantages than advantages for Malta if it becomes a European Union member.

Nothing has changed this assertion; so much so that in Parliament, the Opposition, representing some 48 per cent of the electorate who agreed with this position, voted against Malta's EU accession treaty. Therefore, the MLP's position on Malta's EU membership should remain one definitely against and the MLP should commit itself to take Malta out of the EU at the first available opportunity.

Any Labour delegate worth his salt should therefore vote for a motion affirming this position, a motion that is going to be moved at the next General Conference. KMB did not state who will move the motion, but it is clear that he is behind it.

And in confirming this, he nonchalantly took advantage of a privilege afforded to him as a former MLP leader by signing the letter as a delegate for life (delegat ghal ghomru).

Speaking at an MLP activity in Marsalforn, the day before KMB's letter was published in il-Mument, Alfred Sant was obviously aware of Karmenu's sally and the logic behind it - even though he did not refer to it in any way.

Dr Sant recalled that the MLP (i.e. Dr Sant himself, but not KMB) had always believed that Malta should have the best relationship with the EU and they had believed that this pointed to the 'partnership' road (whatever that was!).

Now since the majority of the people had thought otherwise, the MLP should seek to mitigate the disadvantage of EU membership and ensure that the advantages (now he says that there are advantages!) of membership are available to all.

Malta cannot be put in the position where it is swinging from membership to non-membership and back with every change of government, as this would give rise to an uncertainty that would damage the country. For once, I found myself staring at an Alfred Sant statement with which I cannot but wholly agree! Not so KMB, of course.

KMB's stated position written on an old-fashioned typewriter with an old-fashioned lawyer's jargon is completely the opposite of what Dr Sant said in Marsalforn. In this case, he is not alone.

All the other people who matter in today's MLP - Charles Mangion, my namesake and Evarist Bartolo - have publicly committed themselves to a fresh realistic MLP policy on Malta's relationship with the EU. Whatever they think of Dr Sant, they concur with his position that the MLP should not seek Malta's withdrawal from the EU. Mr Bartolo has even gone on record stating that if the MLP adopts this policy, it would be committing political suicide and keep on losing elections.

On Thursday, the GWU daily l-orizzont published the contents of a letter in reply sent to Dr Mifsud Bonnici by Dr Sant and the two MLP deputy leaders. After complaining that they had not received KMB's letter directly, even though they are party delegates and insisting that the KMB's way of playing with words did not reflect the country's political situation correctly, they went on to rebut KMB's logic in much the same way - and language - used by Dr Sant in Marsalforn.

Towards the end of their letter, the MLP leadership emphasised that the party cannot move forward if it keeps looking at the past or if it strays into fighting windmills - implying that KMB is a latter day Don Quixote.

Where does this leave KMB? By my reckoning, if KMB's determination to put the matter to a vote in the MLP General Conference keeps on unabated, when it comes to the crunch he will not carry the day.

This would only mean a vote of no-confidence in KMB and I can envisage that many an MLP delegate would have to suffer more than a few heart-wrenching moments before deciding to vote against what their dear Karmenu would be saying; but the alternative would be tantamount to a vote of no-confidence not only in Dr Sant, but also in all the people who matter in the MLP today as well as in all those that could possibly assume the leadership mantle in the future.

Saner counsel could prevail and it is possible that KMB will backtrack and avoid forcing a vote in the MLP General Conference on the EU issue. After all, for some people in this game somersaults are cheaper by the dozen.

One way or the other, KMB will end up looking hopelessly out of touch with reality and pathetically out of synch with the only reasonable option the MLP has today on the EU issue, if it wants to win the next election.

He will also lose whatever moral authority he still has on the party faithful. Incidentally, he would be just following the fate of the two MLP leaders who preceded him. Maybe, the MLP leadership comes with a curse on what happens after one is no longer the leader!

Whatever happens, KMB's letter to the delegates of the MLP General Conference is already proving to be much more than a silly party game of Postman's knock.