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During the Arab uprising, Malta's then Opposition Leader Joseph Muscat reacted by saying that Malta should exploit the opportunity to boost its tourism figures.Muscat's remarks were widely criticised. The Labour Party, which Muscat leads, defended Muscat's remarks, saying that they prioritise the economic well being of Maltese families.Joseph Muscat was elected prime minister of Malta on 9th March 2013.
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30/03/2013 Joseph Muscat: a leader as small-minded as his followers | Daphne Caruana Galizia
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Joseph Muscat: a leader as small-minded as hisfollowers
Published: February 1, 2011 at 10:01am
Let Vince Micallef through! He's a lawyer, you
know.
The foreign minister has described as “immature” the only statement that the leader of the Opposition has
made about the crisis in Egypt and Tunisia, which is that Malta should “unleash a massive marketing
campaign” to get their tourism business.
The foreign miinister is too kind.
That statement goes beyond mere immaturity and reflects the hamster’s cage mentality of so many Maltese.
But you would expect a leader to lead, and not to be one of the hamsters who can’t see beyond the treadmill.
I don’t suppose you need telling, but I do know that the Poison Dwarf who takes care of the Labour leader’s
communications reads this blog – because every time I refer to him in this manner I find a couple of
obscenities in the comments box – so I will explain why that ‘marketing campaign’ statement was so ill-advised.
1. It makes Joseph Muscat look small-minded.
2. It is disturbing evidence that he has no concept of the magnitude of what is actually happening.
3. His first statement should have been about the crisis, and not about how we can profit from the crisis.
4. Despite doing the Alfred Sant thing and telling us that he is an economist when he isn’t, he clearly has not
understood that the first thing a revolution in Egypt is going to do is have a nuge impact on the price of oil.
Worse still, when somebody devised a mock marketing campaign that fully illustrated just how damned stupid
and shallow the Labour leader’s remarks were, the Poison Dwarf’s considered reaction – when the Labour
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Party was asked to comment – was that they had a good laugh and found the ‘savior faire’ (spelled badly, ofcourse) amusing.
They seem incapable of understanding just how serious this crisis is, and just how stupid and crass Muscatsounded when he said what he did.
A bit of fence-mending (ask Ronnie Pellegrini) would have been in order here, but no. This is the Labour
Party we’re talking about, with its grand history of never apologising and never explaining.
And bang on cue, The Financial Times reports this morning that oil prices have broken through the $100-a-
barrel level for the first time in two years. The Suez Canal and a pipeline linking the Red Sea with the
Mediterranean have continued to operate so far, but the Egyptian economy has ground to a halt.
Unfortunately for Malta, Joseph Muscat will be made prime minister by people who think as he does: small
island types unable to put anything into context, with little insight or self-awareness, who think yet that they
are terribly impressive.
One mustn’t despair, though. This country has survived much worse at the hands of its own people. It will doso again.
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7 Comments Comment
1. maryanne says:February 1, 2011 at 10:30 am
Do you remember the ‘hofra’ which Alfred Sant had found? Maybe Joseph Muscat will find broken
pipelines now and he will be able to shift all the blame like his predecessor.
Reply2. Kukkudrill says:
February 1, 2011 at 10:42 am
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110201/local/muscat-makes-no-apology-for-insensitive-tourism-comments
Reply
Matt B says:February 1, 2011 at 2:25 pm
The comments on that site, as usual, are beyond absurd.
Reply3. Fairy Liquid says:
February 1, 2011 at 10:50 am
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110201/local/malta-appeals-for-orderly-transition-in-egypt
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Reply4. ciccio2011 says:
February 1, 2011 at 10:59 am
A revolution in Egypt could have other dramatic consequences besides the immediate impact on theprice of oil. It can re-open the Middle East territorial disputes and endanger Israel.
Reply
5. Luigi says:February 1, 2011 at 5:10 pm
To be an economist you have to take an honours degree in economics, the a masters, preferably at one
of the world’s top universities, like the LSE. Then, if you are accepted into the doctoral rsearchprogramme, also at a top university, you’ve got to research and write an original thesis – not something
produced for you by an East-Berling-Before-The Fall-Of-The-Wall political mentor. Joseph Muscathas a BA in public policy, an MA in European Studies and a PhD in ‘management research’. That
does not make him an economist, by any stretch of the imagination.
Reply6. La Redoute says:
February 3, 2011 at 10:53 am
The country survived much worse, but in different times.
Expectations are different and the world’s context is different. There’ll be little tolerance for bunglingincompetence and the failure to address real problems.
Muscat is in for a nasty shock. It’s a shame that it won’t affect him one bit, while his sheep-likefollowers are the ones who wil suffer most.
Reply
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