The end of last year was a torrid time for the country, in the midst of public protests organised by civil society in relation to the alleged government involvement in the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder case. During this period, many complained of a lack of sales and economic activity across various sectors. During such a state of political turmoil culminating in the resignation of the Prime Minister, many rightfully felt that they should be more cautious and conservative with their money.
As the New Year rolled in and a new Prime Minister took the helm, the country seems to be returning to normality. People seem to be going back to their usual spending patterns and to business as usual.
A few days ago, the new Prime Minister Robert Abela has stated that the country has returned to a state of normality. This was expressed when he was addressing an extraordinary general conference which was held to commemorate one hundred years of existence of the Labour party. The Prime Minister said that just after a few days from his appointment, a sense of peace and stability can already be felt.
The Prime Minister underlined that hard decisions which hurt both himself and his colleagues had been taken. The objective of the new Prime Minister is to ensure that Malta does not go through what happened again. In this regard, a good governance committee was set up for the implementation of necessary reforms. To maintain this state of normality, the Prime Minister has stated that he will insist that all institutions perform their work well, without interfering.
Whilst it is true that most people seem to have moved beyond the happenings of last year, can we really state that we have achieved normality considering that the case of Daphne Caruana Galizia has not yet been resolved? The perpetrators of the murder are still yet to be found guilty and an attack on Malta’s freedom of speech will have long-term repercussions.
Can the country afford to have another unresolved political murder and revert to business as usual? The people deserve truth and clarity where the true perpetrators face justice. Until that happens, we cannot really say that all is back to normal. What are your views on the developments of this matter? Do you think that we have achieved a state of normality? Let us know in the comments section below.
