Il-proċess elettorali li bih il-PN għażel il-mexxej tiegħu mhuwiex ta’ interess sempliċement għax l-għażla spiċċat kif spiċċat. Il-mistoqsija hi jekk il-metodu segwit kienx effettiv.
L-intenzjoni kienet li l-għażla tinfirex lejn l-usa’ saff ta’ nies b’impenn fil-partit: il-membri. Dan skont il-mudell Amerikan. Il-metodu l-ewwel ħalla lid-delegati tal-konferenza ġenerali jagħżlu żewġ kontestanti, u wara l-membri jagħżlu bejn it-tnejn.
Fi Franza iż-żewġ partiti l-kbar (sal-aħħar elezzjonijiet għax warajha, m’għadhomx) kienu tellqu mill-bidu nett l-għażla tal-kontendenti għall-presidenza u l-mexxej de facto tagħhom, prattikament fost il-poplu kollu. Basta min imur jivvota, iħallas mingħalija 10 ewro.
Aktar milli biex isaħħu d-demokrazija, is-suspett jibqa’ li l-partiti jidħlu għal dat-tip ta’ proċess għax jagħrfu li l-istrutturi interni tagħhom saru dgħajfa u remoti wisq. M’għadhomx jirriflettu l-ħsus tas-soċjetà. Effettivament il-proċessi tal-primarji qed jippromwovu kandidati minn barra l-istrutturi tal-partiti.
Fil-każ tal-PN, osservatur minn barra jista’ jikkonkludi wkoll li l-proċess ittawwal wisq, bla bżonn u b’dannu għall-istess partit.
IL-ĦOLMA TA’ JUNCKER
Il-President tal-Kummissjoni Ewropea Jean Claude Juncker ibati mill-verżjoni politika tad-diżordni msejħa “bi-polar”?
Ftit (sena) ilu, fil-Parlament Ewropew ta rendikont dwar il-qagħda tal-Unjoni Ewropea mimli biżgħat dwar il-futur tagħha; qatt ma raha daqstant mifruda u mħarbta, sostna.
Il-ġimgħa li għaddiet, fl-istess okkażjoni ta’ dis-sena, bil-maqlub: it-temp hu mill-isbaħ, l-Unjoni qed taffaċċja realtajiet sbieħ u għandha tieħu l-okkażjoni biex malajr malajr issaħħaħ u twessa l-poteri u l-funzjonijiet tagħha.
Kemm il-pessimiżmu u kemm l-ottimiżmu huma esaġerati. Juncker riesaq lejn tmiem il-ħatra tiegħu u jrid jispiċċaha fuq nota tajba. Hi l-aħħar opportunità għalih biex jimbotta ’l quddiem l-għanijiet federalisti li dejjem kienu tiegħu.
Laqatni l-aktar il-kuntrast bejn ir-rieda li pproklama biex l-Unjoni Ewropea tidher bħala qrib il-popli u demokratika; u l-proposti tiegħu biex jissaħħu l-istrutturi federali baxx baxx, billi jintużaw klawsoli fit-trattati li jippermettu bdil fir-regoli ta’ tmexxija bi qbil intern.
SKEJJEL
Iż-żmien meta l-iskejjel jiġu biex jiftħu hu wieħed ta’ ksir ir-ras għal amministraturi, għalliema, ġenituri u tfal. Diffiċli tgħid għal min l-aktar.
Kelli ċans nosserva dan l-aħħar kif tmexxa dal-ftuħ fi Franza u fil-Belġju. Aktar ma jgħaddu s-snin, aktar jikkargaw it-tħejjijiet minn qabel, hekk li l-eżerċizzju kollu donnu jitqies mill-istess perspettiva bħal xi wieħed militari. Trasport lejn l-iskejjel, klassijiet u faċilitajiet nodfa, għalliema f’posthom, tfal inkwadrati tajjeb, kurrikula ngranati… rapporti fil-bullettini tal-aħbarijiet sa filgħaxija… u l-magna bdiet iddur.
Jekk iqumu l-problemi, jibdew jidwu stejjer kbar imbarazzanti. Jekk kollox qed idur ftit jew wisq kif suppost, il-biċċa tintesa minnufih.
English Version – The PN election
The electoral process deployed by the PN to elect its leader is of interest not simply because of the outcome. The real interest lies in the question: was the method followed effective enough?
The intention was to place the decision among the widest range of people having a commitment to the party: its members, as per the US model. The method adopted first asked the candidates of the party’s general conference to choose two contenders and then let party members decide between the two.
In France the two largest parties (at least up to the last elections, for since then, their situation has changed) established right from the start that the choice of their candidate for the presidency and thereby de facto leader of the party would be left practically to the people as a whole. The only proviso was that those who went to vote needed to pay 10 euros (if I remember correctly).
One suspects that parties are hardly adopting this approach in order to strengthen democracy, but more likely they’re doing it because they realize that their internal structures have become too weak and too remote. They no longer reflect the prevailing mood in the society at large. Indeed party primaries are promoting candidates who arrive from outside ruling structures.
In the case of the PN, an outside observer could also conclude that the selection process unnecessarily dragged on for too long, to the detriment of the party itself.
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JUNCKER’S DREAM
Does European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker suffer from a political version of bipolar disorder?
Some time – a year – ago, at the European Parliament, he gave an account of the state of the EU that was most fearful about its future; he claimed he had never seen the Union so divided and confused.
Last week, on a similar occasion covering 2017, the opposite was in order: everything’s sunny, prospects for the Union are really encouraging and it should seize the opportunity as quickly as possible to strengthen and extend its powers and functions.
Both the pessimism and the optimism are over the top. Juncker is approaching the end of his term and would like to finish it on a high note. It would be his final opportunity to push forward the federalist agendas that were always his.
I was impressed most by the contrast between his declared objective for the EU to show that it is democratic and close to the concerns of people; and his proposals to strengthen federal structures by stealth, using existing clauses in the treaties that allow for changes to management rules following internal agreement.
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SCHOOLS
When the time comes for schools to open, administrators, teachers, parents and children endure massive stress. It is difficult to say who is most affected by this.
I recently had an opportunity to observe how schools in France and Belgium open after the summer break. Over the years, preparatory arrangements have proliferated, so that the whole exercise seems to have become one needing a military setup. School transport, classes and educational facilities must be brought up to scratch, teaching personnel deployed correctly, children duly monitored, curricula in order… reports in news bulletins during the day till late evening… as the machinery starts to turn.
If problems arise, embarrassing stories make headlines. If things develop more or less as they should, the whole matter is immediately forgotten.
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