The Hardest Word

It all boils down to when you say it and how you say it then. As the poet said “It’s a sad sad situation, and it’s getting more absurd”. What began as a political issue on the pros and cons of a power station contract ended up as the battle of the apologies (or absence thereof). Joseph Muscat has trumped Lawrence Gonzi this time.

Both parties had been perceived to have committed a “wrong”. A foul. Apparently once you say sorry it’s all over. We have been spared the flurry of libels this time – instead we have the latest stance of concocted or real “indignation”.

Mizzi’s gaffe about Mario Galea and his condition was unpardonable. His was a heavy handed invasion of the private in an attempt to gain questionable political mileage. There are no two ways to go about it. An apology on that point can never come too soon – and need not even be asked for. The shame and guilt should suffice to bring the apology forward. We cannot wonder therefore at the gambit of Muscat’s Politically Contrite image. It has to work because it’s the bloomin’ obvious. What’s maravilious about it is that we had to wait till Monday morning.

We did not get one but two apologies. There was the private apology AND the public apology. We can only assume that one was the sincere “I’m sorry” from man to man while the other is the PR apology – a public act of contrition that includes an admission and an example: it is just as sincere but also reminds the public that these “role models” are admitting the error of their ways – do not copy this at home.

Now here is Lawrence’s quandary. The battle of apologies is a hand forced upon him in many ways. But when Tonio stood up late on a Thursday night to make certain claims about Justyne Caruana’s hushed vote in parliament he should have seen that coming. Forget the rubbish about pregnancy or non-pregancy – stuff for hysterical feminists and troglodyte chauvinists alike – the circumstantial evidence points to more than a hint of fabrication from the governmental benches.

The quandary is here. Were Lawrence to apologise contritely in a manner that should appease the baying crowds and disdained populace still coming to terms with the possibility of a “lying minister” then this would be an admission of guilt. The PN spin has until now waved the flimsy alibi of engineered soundbites and been supported by the usual suspects – it has not yet conceded the point. We all know how impossible it is to apologise for something before you admit to having done it.

That is the quandary for Lawrence. That is why he risks losing more plus points (not of the Bondi kind) among the voters. The General Council may be a placebo of pats on backs among friends but out in the street confidence in a government that cannot admit when it has gone too far is prone to wane.

For Lawrence, sorry seems  to be the hardest word.ù

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ADDENDUM

Lino Spiteri pens a brilliant article in today’s Times about the consequences of Labour’s withdrawal from the committee responsible for electoral reform: Labour allows democracy veto.

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