The time for a nation - Carmelo Abela

Over the last 11 days normality seems to have been swept from our streets. Things have changed. No one knows for how long. However I believe that together we can surmount this obstacle. I do not say this just to add a level of hope but because indeed I believe in the strength of this nation.

We, as a government, have been taking this threat seriously as from the start. It is now ever clearer that Malta was not caught unprepared. We followed the progress of the spread of the disease and we enacted the needed protocols that we had been training for in case of such an emergency.

 We placed early orders for specialised machines and started to strategise to have enough isolated beds and ITU beds in order to service prospective sufferers while still being able to tackle our normal loads. This level of preparedness was evident across the main sectors that are the first respondents to this crisis: our healthcare system and civil order. Our health authorities and civil order institutions sprung into action under the leadership of the prime minister, the sterling work by the hinister for health and the rigorous, methodical approach by Prof. Charmaine Gauci.

The innate nature of the crisis coupled with a number of drastic measures that were taken in order to safeguard public health had a negative effect on our businesses. These same businesses provide a livelihood to our citizens who at this time need a timely and dependable income more than ever before.

The government already announced two rounds of measures to address this situation. The first measures announced were aimed at assisting businesses on their liquidity by postponing tax payments. The latest €1.8bn strong round of assistance announced on Wednesday is meant to address different groups whose everyday employment was affected; be they employees who were laid off, employees who have been asked to report to work for less days, self-employed and even persons with disability whose work life was curtailed.

 Another measure that helps employees directly is the introduction of leave for mandatory quarantine. As the cases of individuals on obligatory quarantine started to increase we realised that it was paramount to intervene for these persons not to be negatively affected.

The EU has been failing through this crisis

That is why on behalf of the government I signed a new legal notice that introduces a special quarantine leave that will result in employees still getting paid when the health authorities or any other state authority requires for them to be in quarantine.

In a follow up action we also took on feedback from employers and we have now committed to shouldering our part by paying €350 for each employee on mandatory quarantine.

 I would, however, like to latch on to what a landlord who lowered her rent in order to help her tenants said in the last hours: “Everyone has to carry a small part of this burden if we want to all survive together”. It is indeed more than understandable for small enterprises in the sectors most affected to ask for the government’s intervention. However one cannot expect that the people’s taxes are splashed all over without sensible planning.

It is the government’s responsibility to keep enough reserves to be able to sustain us all within a crisis that is yet unquantifiable. This government’s diligence should indeed help reassure our elderly, our families and our youths that the country’s leader-ship is mapping its every move diligently.

 However the government can only do its part, we as a community need to do ours. We need to continue to show solidarity, kindness and appreciation to one another. Unity above all.

The sense of national unity is truly what will see us through. The efforts that we make for one another: the artist that sings from his balcony to keep us positive; the teacher recording videos for her pupils; the nurses working tirelessly and depriving themselves from their families; companies offering free services.

 This is indeed the spirit that has helped us Maltese surmount the struggles of the past from wars to economic downturns. It is this sense of nation that makes us who we are, and indeed it’s in moments like these that we realise how risky it was when some tried to chip it in the not so distant past.

In 2020 however our nationhood is also characterised by our European citizenship. Malta expects solidarity from the EU, not with fluff and words but with action and money, however the EU has been failing through this crisis. Italy asked for help: a call that the EU left unanswered, had to be answered by China, which delivered coronavirus supplies to Italy last week.

In 2008 it was the banks that asked for a bailout. If COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc, it might be whole industries. Be it in relation to health supplies and machines or for financial help it is now the right time for the EU to advance tangible assistance to its member states and to allow them flexibility when it comes to state aid rules. Desperate circumstances need desperate measures.

 I am hopeful that with the resources that we have saved as a country over the last seven years, with the efforts of our society and with further assistance from the EU we can indeed weather this storm and emerge as better people, better Maltese, better Europeans, better citizens of the world in a re-invigorated existence that appreciates the value of every hug.

Carmelo Abela is minister within the Office of the Prime Minister