Speaking to the papers earlier this week Franco Debono was protesting that his was not the voice of a rebel politician but that of the electorate. The nationalist MP had just lived through another period of being labelled a renegade by his side and a near miss by the members of parliament across the chamber and was once again attempting to explain what his motivations.
Is Franco Debono an anomaly or yet another clear sign of the newly-formed rules of the game in the New Republic? His criticism of Minister Austin Gatt’s transport reform was couched in constitutional terms of “accountability”, “collective and individual ministerial responsibility”, “control on spending” and other such terms that are the staple food of the democratic system of checks and balances. Beyond Debono lay an opposition baying for much more than constitutional principles and ministerial blood. There lay an opposition still firmly entrenched in old ways hoping that this “crisis” would be the last for “GonziPN”. They refused to understand Debono’s line of thinking… to them there was one way out – the collapse of government and early elections.
[box type=”info”] That (…) Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. – US Declaration of Independence[/box]
The math behind electoral laws is such that ensures that the government of the day is one that enjoys the confidence of the majority of the people. It’s basic democratic spiel. Franco Debono’s noise about being the electorate implies that somehow the circle of trust between the electorate and the party in government had somehow lost its focus. His, the MP claims, was not a battle to destroy the legitimate government but to remind it of its duty towards the electorate. In many ways Franco Debono is right. Far from the noise of the spin gurus and the spam, the message that Debono sent shockingly to the PN core is a clear Caveat. His idea of a modern politician is of one who puts his constitutional duty of representation above that of loyalty to his party. Franco Debono turned into the one man guardian of “We the people”.
How far does Franco’s concept of “electorate” depart from our previous ideas of the workings of democracy? Not much. It’s rather the manner in which the electorate is bandied around that is becoming quite novel, and not just in Malta. At the end of the day the MP’s seat and the cabinet chair is theoretically filled by those entrusted by “We the people” to run and manage the affairs of the state in the interests of the common good. Just a tiny strait of sea away we have just witnessed a change in government from a political one (elected by “We the people”) to a technocrat one (SuperMario’s nanny government entrusted with nursing Italy’s economy into EU standard good health).
What happened in Italy is a clear sign of the result of new pressures. Merkel, Sarkozy and international pressure obliged Berlusconi to bow out. Silvio did not even lose a vote of confidence in parliament. If you believe Silvio, he stood aside for the good of the people. What happens in these circumstances – will the good of the people trump the normal rules that have their chosen representatives in their rightful seats? For how long?
Economically hard times might prove to be a godsend for parties selling cheap solutions and promising the earth. The new republics will need a wiser citizen when choosing his representatives. Half-baked solutions and empty promises are a ticking bomb that risk breaking becoming the straw that breaks the camels back. How long will technocratic governments be on standby to wrong the rights of elected officials?
We the people still have an important role to play in our liberal democracies. We the people must learn to chose wisely and for the greater good.
The New Republic can only be based on intelligent voters.
[box type=”info”] PREDICTION 25 – In the future, the value of your vote will become less than zero. That happens when the amount you pay in taxes to have your own vote counted is less than the value that you get from the vote itself. (The Dilbert Future – Scott Adams)[/box]
