When Gavin Gulia, and then Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, added their names to the list of casual election candidates to fill the Labour parliamentary vacancy created by the departure of former minister Edward Scicluna, nobody so much as batted an eyelid.
The name of Charles Azzopardi was already on the ballot and, having been exposed by this newspaper as a paid-up member of the PN, it was natural that the Labour Party should prefer another of its former candidates to be elected rather than Azzopardi.
Apart from the unusual circumstances surrounding Azzopardi’s candidature, it was all set to be a normal, straightforward contest, in line with countless casual elections carried out in the past. Not so fast.
Gulia was duly elected by the transfer of votes from Scicluna and took his seat in parliament… for a few minutes. But MPs from both sides of the House of Representatives were stunned when he announced his resignation because, he said, the prime minister had asked him to stay on as chairman of the Malta Tourism Authority in these challenging times.
The ‘now you see him, now you don’t’ MP had just paved the way for the vacancy to be filled by co-option; in other words for the Labour Party to choose another MP from outside the field of candidates.
Whether or not that person will be a worthy MP – and it looks likely he will – is beside the point. The prime minister has just performed nothing short of a con trick on the electorate, a ploy to put in place the person of his choice rather than someone elected by the people.
The co-option mechanism is in accordance with the General Elections Act. The PN had used it recently to seat its newly -elected leaders. But while far from conforming to the ideal that all MPs be elected by the voters, those moves were pre-announced and expected. In the case of Gulia, it took everyone by surprise.
This was a fake election. It means Prime Minister Robert Abela does not mind pulling the wool over people’s eyes to achieve his ends. For him, the means justified the end – of putting in place a loyal even if a potentially competent individual.
This hoax signifies that Abela has little respect for the ideals of democracy. It further undermines the already weak institution of parliament and poor separation between the branches of power.
Parliament’s role, apart from passing laws, is to represent the people, and in that capacity, to oversee and scrutinise the workings of the executive, acting as a check on its powers. Backbenchers need to fulfil that role alongside the opposition.
However, they are already largely compromised in that function by their blind allegiance to their party in Malta’s highly-partisan political culture, and further by their appointment to government-paid posts.
Another way to make sure they are totally beholden to the prime minister is for him to handpick them as his MPs.
Malta has learned some important lessons from history about democracy, such as the changes to the electoral system it made following the jerrymandering during the Mintoff era.
The Gulia episode, while minor in comparison, just serves to highlight the need for further reform to strengthen parliament as an institution vital to the proper functioning of democracy, so that it can become worthy of being called the highest institution in the land. The upcoming Constitutional Convention is a golden opportunity to achieve that.
To boil it down to the bare essentials, our parliamentarians must serve the people and the country, and not the party in power.