Malta is a small country with a booming economy and several industries that are flourishing. Significant reports highlight the continued growth and investment made by the people living in Malta. Such success has been undoubtedly propelled by industries such as gaming, financial services, property and technology. Without a doubt, the success that the country boasts is also associated with the Labour government, which has been influential in the economic path that Malta has taken.
The Labour government is at the back of two electoral landslides with an approximate forty thousand lead in both past elections respectively. In the context of Malta, these are remarkable wins. The current Labour party saw off two Nationalist leaders who have both resigned following these defeats.
Considering these back-to-back landslide victories, one starts to ask whether there is anyone who can really rival the Labour party, considering that Malta only has two big parties. These two landslide elections are accompanied with the fact that the Nationalist party is now in tatters, considering all its financial woes and inability to realistically compete with the organisational capacity of the Labour party. This is also combined with the fact that the leadership of the Nationalist party was put under heavy scrutiny a few weeks ago, following several claims and accusations, both related to the PN Leader’s political decisions and also his personal issues. Such pressure is also said to have caused strife within the Nationalist party, where we have different factions both backing and opposing the current leader. This obviously impacts the number of Nationalist party followers negatively as the numbers continue to spiral downwards.
Recent research published on a Labour party-owned newspaper seems to indicate that there is a strong gap between the Prime Minister and Leader of Opposition giving the Labour party a potentially bigger lead in the eve of the upcoming MEP elections.
Although Malta is constantly growing as a country, it is quite a dangerous concept for democracy itself to have just one strong party. A democratic country requires a strong opposition that is able to keep the government in check and provide a serious alternative as a contender for election.
In a country where everything seems to be set in growth mode and an opposition which is finding difficulty in standing up, Malta may be set for another decade of a Labour government, or so it seems. One will need to see how the situation develops, especially as current Prime Minister Joseph Muscat seems to be eyeing an exit out of local Maltese politics, paving the way for a new contender who will bring to the fore a new approach.
