The first week of the general election campaign has thrown up everything that the people have come to expect: mass rallies in every corner of the country, billboards as far as the eye can see, and major parties trying to outdo one another with their proposals.
But it has also thrown up the continuation of a pattern that has been evident over the past years: a continued blurring between State and political party lines.
The power of incumbency has always been a factor in Malta: the party in government usually finds little issue in rewarding those close to it with state roles or jobs – think of how many politically affiliated individuals end up as a government CEO, or how many party supporting businesses get government direct orders over the years.
In election time this power becomes all the more relevant, and we have seen no less than three instances of how the lines between State and party continue to be blurred.
The first was, in actual fact, a few days before the election was called, as the Transport Ministry came out with a glitzy new transport plan for the island – titled Malta in Motion – which was made up of largely known promises and a downsized metro project that the Prime Minister had already mooted some months before.
Cynics will say that the timing was planned so that the PL can tick off a point off their 2022 general election manifesto right before the next election is called.
The second was last week, when on Thursday, Robert Abela and Miriam Dalli – in their roles of Prime Minister and Energy Minister respectively – announced a government press conference to share Malta’s energy plans for the next years, including an idea for a third interconnector.
It was a bizarre moment, as the event really felt out of place within the context of an electoral campaign. Indeed, it felt purely like a way of using government resources and power to prop up the PL’s electoral campaign ideas.
Finally, on Friday, Robert Abela emerged for the Labour Party’s mass meeting in Castille Square from the Office of the Prime Minister, which is situated inside the Auberge de Castille. It is a small action, comparatively, but the underlying message is clear.
These practices are not unprecedented. In the run-up to the 2022 general election, for instance, the government handed out tax refund cheques to the general public.
Such blurring of lines, and use of public resources for the benefit of the party’s electoral fortunes creates an unlevel and unfair playing field which ultimately can have a detriment to the country’s democracy.
No Opposition can compete with the resources that the State has and that in itself undermines the fairness of any election and democratic process.