If I were to be asked, but there's no reason why I should be, I'd say that people like Sandro Chetcuti, described in other areas of the media as a "captain of the construction industry" (evoking images of a behemoth ploughing ahead regardless of what's left in its wake, but whatever) should not be allowed even within spitting distance of contesting elections for the Nationalist Party.

In fact, there's no evidence that he got anywhere near this distance, except in the fevered imaginations of the slavish adherents to the "plague on both your houses" school of political thought. 

If you want evidence of this sort of mentality, check out the leadership of the Alternattiva Demokratika on their Facebook pages.  According to these chaps, it seems that even breathing the same air as Chetcuti is proof incontrovertible that he is to be elevated almost to leadership status.

Don't you find it revealing that the mere notion that Chetcuti might nail his colours to the PN mast raised eyebrows, while an alliance with Premier Joe's bunch gave no-one at all any pause for thought?

Not having been present - obviously - when Chetcuti met Busuttil, I have no proof, it need hardly be said, that Busuttil didn't, actually, roll over to have his tummy tickled by the construction magnate. 

I am perfectly comfortable saying that I find it highly unlikely that this happened.  In fact, like Alfred Sant, former and virtually forgotten leader of the Labour Party, I can say that I morally convinced that it didn't.  

AD chairman Arnold Cassola, on the other hand, turns into stark fact a fleeting reference to a chat made by Chetcuti while he was being interviewed, but that's the way the Greens colour their copybooks, it seems.

Leaving aside school-yard taunting, then, let's take a calmer look at what's been exercising the sensibilities of many of the righteous, including the only Maltese Pulitzer Prize winner to date.  Sincere congratulations, by the way, hope you're not holding your breath waiting for an invitation to Castille to take your place alongside the panoply of Eurovision contestants and other celebrities.

Sandro Chetcuti, seen by many, but clearly not Premier Joe, as the very embodiment of the unacceptable face of big business (and there's no legal business bigger than construction in Malta) let it be known, for reasons that are obvious, that he had conversations with both parties about the possibility of his contesting the elections.  

I have no idea how these things are done within Premier Joe's outfit, on the fourth or any other floor, but I have it on pretty good authority that before anyone is allowed to get on the PN ticket (as opposed to hinting that he might think about it, anyone can do that) he has to go through a number of processes, none of which appear to have even been thought of yet. 

Apart from serving as a salutary reminder that the PN needs to be sure that it does not compromise its moral authority to be elected in place of the current bunch, the Chetcuti 'incident' should be seen for what it is, simple political exploration of possibilities as happens in the real world.  When military strategists "game play" invading Comino using nuclear options, this does not mean that they actually intend to do it, it's a simple 'what if' exercise.

In the immortal words of another forgotten political leader, calm down, dears.

And to close with a question: don't you find it revealing that the mere notion that Chetcuti might nail his colours to the PN mast raised eyebrows, while an alliance with Premier Joe's bunch gave no-one at all any pause for thought?