Interview with Arnold Cassola on his coalition politics

I managed to get these answers from Professor Arnold Cassola after putting some pressure on him. At first he was a bit reluctant, but eventually he found the time to reply. He was initially, evasive on the ADPD and the 2004 election result questions, and focused more on praising his current campaign. I am arguing that Arnold Cassola would have had a better political result if he was compromising in his methods with the same people that agree with him.

It has to be noted that Arnold Cassola got around 23,000 votes in 2004 wen he contested as a candidate with Alternattiva Demokratika, a stark cotnrast with his latest result of around 15,000 votes for the the European Parliament elections.

Undoubtedly, you have been the victorious leader of third-party or alternative candidates to the major political parties. You have now called for a coalition to rally behind you. Have you spoken to ADPD in advance of this, and why didn’t you work with ADPD before announcing this statement? After all, ADPD is the same party you have yourself founded.

In electoral terms it was heartbreaking to lose out on making history by such a narrow margin. However the final short burst of the campaign has shown me that there is indeed hope.

The overwhelming drive of talent and hope that has amassed itself around the Issa ?-?ans campaign transcends Arnold Cassola and any other politician or party. An informal formation of well meaning, intelligent, talented, deeply committed people rushed towards the campaign to support the effort. Many of them were people who had never participated in politics in any way. The Issa ?-?ans campaign has remodeled the Maltese political landscape for good and this presents a wealth of opportunities well beyond what we are used to. I’ll give you one small fact to consider. The campaign started with about 8 volunteers contributing their valued time and capabilities. At time of writing, the Issa ?-?ans database boasts almost 400 people from every aspect of Maltese society declaring their commitment to help at every level.

Don’t you think your result would have been more effective had you worked with ADPD? Many veterans and those who know you well suspect that this is your fault. When you worked with a team and with the same political party you founded, you got an even much better result and you were going to get elected. I remember those days very well. You are also criticised for failing to be compromising in Malta with your political friends especially on subjects like abortion, but your political experience in Italy was more compromising. What do you respond to this? 

AC: While it was indeed my name on the billboards this was purely a team effort. The work that propelled our campaign to surge in the way it did in the last 21 days necessitated a very disciplined coordination. Had we started our sprint at least 3 weeks earlier we would have certainly achieved much more. However this was certainly a great start borne of a collective approach with one overarching team, then subdivided into numerous others. All this to say that I’m very keen on being part of a team where decisions are taken in a structured democratic way. There is nothing that spurs me on more than being part of a community that has great aspirations and purpose.

On abortion I have remained steadfast in my opinion. It is a matter of conscience that I have not moved on throughout my career.

In fact, in my 26 years active in the pro-abortion European Green Party I have always represented the views of Alternattiva Demokratika, which were always against abortion, both through my voting and in writing.

With regards to my participation in Italian politics with the pro-abortion Verdi, I did this on condition that I was free to maintain my anti-abortion position. The Verdi went on to form part of the nine party Prodi “Unione” coalition. The coalition was made up of a wide spectrum of parties, which included for instance the conservative Catholic party of Mastella.

The majority in Malta may very well agree that in Malta we have a problem or significant problems with planning and the construction industry. You are getting the votes mainly for this reason, and rightly so, it is currently a major problem in the Islands both for the environment and for the political system in terms of how it works. However, governing a country takes more than a planning policy and environmental credentials. How are you willing to address this?

The campaign has drawn towards it people with a broad set of high-value expertise. This has compelled the campaign to have conversations about data, strategy, design and so forth that were very much absent in the past. However we are yet to define where our focus will be moving forward. Our ambition is in earning the people’s trust to lead Malta in certain key departments such as economy, environment and education. Although the exact targets are yet to be set. Let’s not rush.

Any strategy we adopt as we press on will keep in mind the group’s limitations in terms of finance and resources as well as its trove of talents, networks etc. A key consideration in decision making is not merely what we intend to do, but we intend to forgo doing. Independents (myself included) and third-parties have long spread ourselves thin, rendering our efforts largely ineffective on the national stage. All upcoming pursuits will be informed by data and the facts on the ground while taking into consideration what actual resources and expertise the group has to be effective in that area.

You do understand that you are being evasive to my questions especially on ADPD, yes?

Mark Camilleri

Website Editor
Historian and Publisher