Fil-proġett li l-kumpanija tad-db trid ittella’ f’Paceville, qam fil-qrati u ġie aċċettat l-argument ta’ kunflitt ta’ interess għal membru tal-bord, fid-deċiżjoni li kellha tittieħed mill-awtoritajiet tal-ippjanar. Il-qorti għarfet l-eżistenza ta’ kunflitt u ħadet deċiżjoni radikali biex tikkompensa għalih. Sew għamlet.
Imma… u dan hu imma kbir… jeħtieġ li l-kwistjoni kollha tal-konflitti ta’ interess li dal-pajjiż hu mdewwed bihom tiġi miflija bl-istess mod radikali.
Fl-oqsma kollha… mill-ġudizzjarju għall-ekonomiku u soċjali, għall-politiku u kulturali… il-konflitti ta’ interess ma jaqtgħux. F’parti kbira minn dak li jiġri, iċ-ċokon tal-gżira tagħna jaħti biex jikkonċentra l-konflitti ta’ interess. Familji, relazzjonijiet personali, ir-rabtiet ta’ “ħokkli dahrek u nħokklok tiegħek”, fost oħrajn, iżidu t-taħlita fil-borma.
Aktar minn ħafna diskussjonijiet fl-ajru dwar kostituzzjoni jew ma nafx xhiex, forsi l-akbar urġenza hi ta’ diskussjoni onesta fuq il-konflitti ta’ interess li jseħħu madwarna l-ħin kollu mingħajr ma nindunaw… jew nippretendu li m’aħniex nindunaw.
IL-FUTUR TAL-EWROPA
Jekk fhimt tajjeb, waħda mill-wegħdiet li qed tagħmel il-President tal-Kummissjoni Ewropea l-ġdida von der Leyen hi li tinżamm konferenza wiesgħa fuq tul ta’ żmien biex tipproponi miżuri dwar il-futur tal-Ewropa.
Ilsna ħżiena fi Brussell jgħidu li din hi biss skuża biex isibu kariga għal Guy Verhofstadt, eks-Prim Ministru Belġjan u eks-mexxej tal-grupp liberali fil-Parlament Ewropew. L-ewwel darba li tisimgħu jitkellem, Verhofstadt jimpressjonak. Fid-drabi ta’ wara, idejqek bl-attitudni tiegħu li jrid jagħti lezzjoni lil kulħadd.
Jien kont membru ta’ Konvenzjoni Ewropea xi ħmistax-il sena ilu. Kienet maħsuba biex tikteb “kostituzzjoni” għall-Ewropa. Spiċċat fjask. Forsi l-istorja se tirrepeti ruħha?
ĊERF ABJAD
Ir-rumanz ta’ Ċen Ġongxi, “Fil-Pajjiż taċ-Ċerf l-Abjad”, fit-traduzzjoni li qrajt jien, hu itwal minn 1,100 paġna. Ħadli ġimgħat twal biex nispiċċah. Ma jiddispjaċinix dwar hekk għax hu tassew kitba fertili fl-immaġinazzjoni u konkreta fil-mod kif tiżviluppa rakkont epiku dwar il-bidliet li jseħħu matul xi ħamsin sena fir-reġjun Ċiniż taċ-Ċerf l-Abjad.
Ċen Ġongxi, kittieb prolifiku, ftit magħruf fil-“Punent”, kiseb suċċess tassew kbir f’pajjiżu b’dar-rumanz li jsegwi l-ġrajjiet f’żona li tgħix bil-ħidma ta’ bdiewa marbuta mat-tradizzjonijiet Ċiniżi ta’ dejjem. Sadattant, qed jikkollassa l-poter tal-imperaturi “qodma” u qed jibdew jasserixxu rwieħhom forzi ġodda, bħal dawk tal-partit nazzjonalista tal-Kuomintang u dak tal-Partit Kommunist. Fin-nofs, jagħqdu dejjem il-familji tan-nies “komuni”, fil-każ ta’ dar-rumanz, il-bdiewa tal-pajjiż taċ-ċerf.
Ġongxi jikteb tajjeb ħafna, ifakkrek f’Tolstoj, anke jekk xi drabi wkoll hemm elementi tat-telenovela f’kitbietu. Forsi wara kollox, issib l-istess ħaġa f’Tolstoj ukoll.
English Version – Conflicts of interest
Regarding the project that the db company would like to implement in Paceville, the argument was raised and defended in court that a conflict of interest existed for a member of the relevant board when this came to decide about the project. The court recognised the existence of a conflict of interest and took a radical position to provide for compensation. It did well.
But… and this is a big but… it is the whole question of the conflicts of interest that overpopulate this country which needs to be examined in just such a radical manner.
In practically all areas… from the judicial to the economic and social, to the political and cultural… conflicts of interest proliferate. For a large part of what goes on, the size of the island accounts for the concentration of conflicts of interest. Family and personal relationships, plus the links that arise from the practice of “rub my back so I’ll rub yours”, add along with other factors, to the unappetising mix.
An honest discussion of the conflicts of interest that occur around us all the time and about which we do not know… or pretend not to know… is of greater urgency perhaps than much empty discourse about changes to the constitution or whatever.
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The future of Europe
If I understood correctly, one of the promises being made by the new President of the European Commission von der Leyen is to hold a wideranging conference over quite some time to propose new measures by which to define Europe’s future.
Wicked people in Brussels have opined that this is just an excuse to find a job for Belgian ex-PM and ex-leader of the Liberal group in the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt. The first time you listen to a Verhofstadt speech, you’re impressed. On subsequent occasions you might get put off by his attitude, that of someone who is always trying to give a lesson to everybody else.
Some fifteen years ago, I was a member of the European Convention. It was summoned to write a “constitution” for Europe and developed into a fiasco. Could history be repeating itself?
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Chen Zhongshi
Chen Zhongshi’s novel “In the country of the White Deer” runs to over 1,100 pages in the translation at my disposal. It took me many weeks to come to its end. I am not complaining because the writing is abundantly imaginative, as well as concrete in the development of an epic account that deals with the changes which happened during some fifty years in a region of China called “White Deer”.
Though not much known in the “West”, Chen Zhongshi was a prolific writer and achieved a really huge success in his country with this novel that follows the fortunes of a community of farmers still living according to longstanding Chinese traditions. Meanwhile, the power of the “old” emperors is collapsing and new forces are coming forward, such as those of the Kuomintang, the nationalist party and of the Communists. Caught in between them, as usual, are “ordinary” families… in this novel the farmers of White Deer.
Zhongshi reminds you at times of Tolstoy, though at other points too, his account comes close to the style of a telenovela. But then after all perhaps you’ll find the same technique also in Tolstoy.
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