It’s a juicy time for pundits out there. Try as they might to feign boredom and blame it on the infantile tactics that were manifested via the billboard wars commentators cannot ignore that the pre-election has entered an interesting phase thanks in no small amount to the sudden...
Tonio’s Non-Me...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
Was it a case of “Veni Vidi Vici”? Did the Commissioner designate “sail-through” the grilling that never was last Tuesday? Has the dinosaur really convinced the trough-addicted pigs of his inveterate submission to the constitutional bible of this “sui...
Porcine Anatomy
posted by Jacques René Zammit
Following the last presidential elections in the United States a couple of states will be legislating the universal right to marry (including same-sex marriages) and a couple of others will be legalizing the personal use of marijuana. The French government has itself begun to debate a bill...
Tonio in Europe
posted by Jacques René Zammit
Tuesday is Tonio Borg’s big day. He faces what increasingly promises to be a grilling before a European parliament committee that is tasked to metaphorically expose the worst traits of potential Commissioners to be. They don’t always work, these grillings. Had someone in the...
Men of the Moment
posted by Jacques René Zammit
“We need a contest”. Prime Minister Gonzi apparently believes that a bit of competition would be healthy for his party. In a way you cannot blame him. The opposition is anything but good competition in that respect given how it seems to be banking solely on the concept of...
Albanian Rising (Ħad...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
Dalgħodu qajmuni kmieni il-qtates. Ġew altament jaqaw iqumu mill-fatt illi kelli dritt statutorju nibqa’ rieqed u ngawdi s-siegħa żejda li akkwistajna u ippretendew unanimament illi inqum nitmagħhom bħallikieku il-Ħadd qatt ma eżista u s-siegħa invernali qatt ma tradditilna....
OLAF & Caesar...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
I’ll try to to be brief on this one and avoid excessive legalisms. Yesterday, the European Anti-Fraud Office (affectionately known as OLAF) deemed it necessary to issue “a statement in order to clarify comments contained in media reports”. Allowing sufficient leeway for the...
Dalligate avec du re...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
The day Dalli resigned from the Commission (or was forced to resign if you prefer) I got a call from Malta. “They’ve just mentioned his resignation on RTK. Is he preparing for the election too?” You couldn’t fault this way of thinking if you wanted to. A man had just...
Dalligate avec du re...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
What was the nickname that Labour had for (then) Minister Dalli a while back? Johnny Cash no? This was back in the time when Dalli was a successful nationalist party heavyweight who imported the much maligned Value Added Tax and bulldozed budget after budget until Sant’s government and...
Dalligate… ave...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
I did say yesterday that the (ex) Commissioner Dalli case smacks of the surreal. With a little less than twenty-four hours time for reflection and with a flurry of statements and press conferences to look at (not to mention the early-worm analysis) we can safely conclude that the case is less...
The Stereotypical Jo...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
A homosexual, a woman, a Gozitan, a farmer, a patient, a hunter, a student and an election candidate walked into a room. Is it the start of the latest viral joke? No, it’s just work as usual at Labour’s Congress about the future that unites us. Progressive Labour seems to be...
The wrong shade of g...
posted by Jacques René Zammit
I must admit to being surprised. My duties elsewhere keep preventing me from blogging with a more teutonic regularity but I still take a peek at what is being said ‘ere and there just to keep abreast of the latest developments. Seems like a November election can all but be ruled out as...