Independent candidate for the upcoming June European Parliament (EP) election Arnold Cassola said that contesting elections is his way to fight the country’s “bullies”, and that he prefers fighting until his last breath than living as a slave of the current leadership.
Cassola, one of the co-founders and former chairperson of the AD – the Green political party in Malta, now an independent MEP candidate, spoke to The Malta Independent on Sunday on his political experience and candidature, after 35 years of contesting local council, national and European elections.
Since 1992, Cassola has unsuccessfully contested all national elections with the party. He resigned from the party in 2019 due to differences with the Executive Committee on the issue of abortion.
The best result he obtained in Maltese politics was that in the 2004 election for the EP, when he obtained 9.33% (23,000 votes) of the first-preference votes, just failing to be elected one of Malta’s five MEPs. He was also a local councillor in Swieqi.
Cassola was asked where he finds the courage to continue fighting, where he replied that he “cannot stand seeing injustice and arrogance continue to reign.”
“I have a character where the more I see this type of bullying, the more I want to fight against it,” Cassola said, and one way to do is would be by contesting elections.
“I prefer dying fighting than living as a slave,” he said.
He called today’s leaders “liars”, who do not care about residents, and the endless scandals publicly coming out are not acceptable, Cassola said.
He said that he wants to retaliate against government’s empty words, business-centred politics, and cannot accept them “laughing in his face.”
“Especially in these upcoming elections, the people seem to be appreciating the alternative choices to represent them in the EP,” Cassola said.
Cassola said that while not much progress was made in other elections, he believes that this time around, there will be a significant shift which carries certain weight.
“Why? Because we have reached the limit. The people cannot even live in their own homes in peace,” Cassola said, referring to rampant construction works in the country.
There is a huge amount of stress in the country, which is being brought about by the politicians leading the country, Cassola said, as well as the politicians who are not stopping them, referring to the Opposition.
“They are giving everything to these bullies, meaning those from Portelli, Stivala, Caqnu, dB, etc,” Cassola said, mentioning major construction magnates on the island.
He said that the Nationalist Party is ineffective in calling out these people by name, while claiming they are in favour of businesses. Cassola said he has no problems naming them, as they have the government wrapped around their finger.
“This trend existed before, but former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat made an art out of it. To be able to buy you, ask what you want, in return for a vote,” Cassola said, mentioning the Planning Authority, which approves the “obscenities” the huge business magnates apply for, yet cause bureaucracy for the average citizen.
Cassola believes he has a chance of winning a seat next June
Asked if he believes that he, or other independent candidates, have a chance of winning a seat in the European Parliament, Cassola said he believes he has a chance, and could not speak for other candidates.
Last Monday, 39 candidates, including nine from PL and eight from the PN were confirmed to be contesting the upcoming EP election. Some of the independent candidates announced their candidature just last week, and had not announced it beforehand.
“The difference with me is that I have 35 years of political experience, with my defects and mistakes, but also with the positives and the results I obtained. And I think that the people are appreciating this, from what I see,” Cassola said, mentioning his campaign launch which was endorsed by 10 personalities including activists, athletes, artists and educators.
These personalities are showing their appreciation towards Cassola’s work, “which is a sign of believing that today, we can in fact elect an independent candidate.”
“In my case, people know what I stand for,” Cassola said, adding that he cannot speak for the other candidates.
Cassola spoke about the four priorities in his campaign, which are; a clean environment, good governance, a compassionate and just society, and a future of hope for youth.
Discussing each one, he said that the country has no ideas of sustainability, and the word is being used haphazardly.
“This small island has the building activity like that of the United States, Canada, Brazil,” Cassola said.
If elected in the European Parliament, Cassola said he would have the chance to use EU tools, through moratoriums, so that certain projects could be stopped, mentioning high-rise buildings in particular.
Cassola spoke about how unbelievable it is that more high-rise buildings are being built in such a small country, yet the road, water, electricity, and drainage infrastructure cannot withstand such development, and have completely collapsed.
“If you have infrastructure which is meant to cater for some hundred people, you cannot expect to build a building for 55,000 people, plus tourists, without addressing the needed infrastructure,” Cassola said, adding that this leads to “money being thrown down the drain.”
He mentioned that millions from EU funds have been spent on three different sewage plants across the country, all of which are disposing sewage into the sea, he alleged. “Government is breaking the environment,” Cassola said.
Cassola said that Maltese seas have been “flooded” by fish farms, yet we also want to attract tourists. He said that government could help traditional fishermen and encourage traditional fishing with traditional tools.
Cassola said one cannot have both at the same time, as it does not make sense economically. Yet the greed for money continues, he said.
He also spoke about air pollution, and the country’s very poor air quality. Cassola spoke about issues in Gharghur, Swieqi, San Gwann, where fumes from laying tarmac for roads have been suffocating residents.
He said that Malta is one of the most desertified countries in the world, and government only says it cares about climate change, yet its actions prove the opposite.
“Government is doing everything against the environment,” Cassola said, continuing to mention the cutting down of trees when there are a lack of them, because the priority is always money.
Cassola described himself as “resident-friendly,” and said that the resident is his first priority.
“We need business, we have to encourage business, but we must encourage honest and sustainable businesses,” Cassola said, also condemning hotels’ and restaurants’ encroachment onto public beaches and pavements.
He said that there are also other areas the country could improve on in terms of green energy, such as wave technology, where little is done to exploit this resource.
“Another thing we do not use at all is geo-thermic energy,” Cassola said, explaining that Malta rests on underwater volcanoes, the energy and heat of which could be exploited. This, however, needs further research, and government must invest in research and innovation, he said.
“In Malta, we only invest 0.6% of the GDP on research,” Cassola pointed out, placing the country in the bottom list for research investment. In creating more opportunities for research, youths in the country would be more interested to stay, Cassola said.
Youths are “disgusted” with situation in Malta
He was asked why it was such an issue that Maltese youths want to leave the country for better opportunities. Cassola himself had left the country, when he served as an MP in the Italian Parliament from 2006 to 2008.
“I left, but I came back. The youths of today want to leave Malta for good,” Cassola said. He continued that if youths leave the country for more experiences and learning, they would come back to Malta more enriched.
“Had I not left and experienced life in Switzerland, Italy and Belgium, I would have not been the fighter I am today. I would have remained the same clueless 24-year-old I was,” Cassola said, explaining that he had not been vocal on issues before he turned 24.
He said that youths today want to leave because they feel “disgusted” with the country, whilst youths in his time left the country due to a lack of work, or for further experiences which are unavailable in Malta.
Cassola pointed out the current high costs for renting or purchasing a home which discourage youths, as well as a lack of open spaces.
Cassola said that all the recent scandals constantly emerging came forth into the limelight after the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017.
“Otherwise, the eyes of the world, as well as ours, would not be so focused on Malta,” Cassola said. He said Caruana Galizia’s murder opened “pandora’s box,” and there is still much more to be revealed.
He said that businesspeople dominate both the Labour Party as well as the Nationalist Party, as they finance both. These people dictate what goes on according to their wishes, Cassola said, calling them “mercenaries who would sell their mother for money.”
Cassola continued that many of Malta’s institutions do not function, naming the Planning Authority, the Permanent Commission Against Corruption (PCAC) – which he said do not do anything, as well as the Commissioner for Standards, who is subject to a year’s prescription.
For a more compassionate society, Cassola explained that this meant taking care of the vulnerable in society.
“We must take care of the vulnerable, and not just during Covid-19 times, when that word was said repeatedly. The vulnerable are also those who on the verge of poverty,” Cassola said, referring to not only people who are homeless, but also those who are struggling to make ends meet with their average income.
Cassola continued that today, youths cannot afford to rent their own place with a mere €1,200 monthly income. He said that were it not for him to have pushed it on the national agenda, today’s elderly and pensioners would still be facing injustices due to the pre-1962 pension anomaly.
He spoke of the unfairness of the citizenship by investment scheme, where government is ready to grant Maltese citizenship to those who invest, yet, contradictorily, government also refrains from granting citizenship to children of foreigners who have been in Malta for many years, if not their whole lives.
On the immigration issue, Cassola said that they ought to be judged according to their behaviour, and not their nationality
Politicians use abortion to attack their political rivals
Cassola was asked about the controversial subject of abortion, of which he is against. He was asked if he believes the topic of abortion should remain on the national agenda, and if there is still the need to continue discussing it.
“Politicians use abortion as a means to either attack the other with it, or make themselves heroes,” Cassola said, adding that abortion is a question of philosophy to him, where he believes that the unborn foetus is a sign of life, yet admitted that this will remain a moral dilemma.
He said he understands opposite views which lead to the abortion solution, but does not agree with it.
He called out politicians who use the matter to try to break the politician on the other side, rendering it into a partisan issue. Cassola said he dislikes these fundamentalist approaches from both sides.
“We have pro-abortion fundamentalists, and anti-abortion fundamentalists,” Cassola explained, adding that he is rational, and respects peoples’ opinions, yet he himself feels strong in his own.
“I am not intimidated because I’m called a dinosaur by one side or the other,” Cassola said, also noting that while abortion is a topic to be discussed, it is one among many other subjects.
PL is not winning on its own merit, but because the PN does not exist in many things.
Cassola was asked whether he believes that the Labour Party continues bagging victories on its own merit, or whether it is because of a weak and inefficient Opposition.
He pointed out that in the last two elections, Labour has actually lost votes when compared to previous ones, and it “continues to win relatively, because the PN is losing more.”
“The PL continues to win, and hold that significant gap, not on its own merit, but because the PN, in many things, does not exist,” Cassola said.
He said that Opposition Leader Bernard Grech particularly, does not have the “guts” to name the people doing illegal things around the country.
He spoke of other MEP candidates, such as Steve Ellul, Peter Agius, and those who have been saying that they want to go to the European Parliament to defend Malta, to pull on one rope together.
Cassola disagreed with this, and said that the people want to see what the candidates have different from each other.
“We are not going there for all the same things. I would tell them, tell me which side of the rope you’d be pulling, so I can pull from the other side,” Cassola said, adding that he wants to defend what is right.
Asked if he would join the European Green Party if elected, Cassola confirmed that he would, on condition of an agreement beforehand that he would be allowed to vote according to his conscience on matters of conscience, and not according to the party’s stance.
He said he has seen this happen in his term as a Secretary General for the EP, and condemned “lackeys” who vote according to the party’s beliefs and not their own. Cassola said that his condition can be met as he has seen such negotiations happen.
Vote to change the status quo
Cassola added that he understood the youths’ frustrations of not wanting to go out to vote in the upcoming elections because of how discouraged they feel.
While respecting what the people do with their votes, Cassola said that a message he would tell youths is that they are frustrated, because they are not happy with the current situation.
“Not voting means that you are endorsing the situation to remain the same, four seats for Labour, two for the PN,” Cassola said.
“If you are not happy, and frustrated, make a change, and change the 58-year-long two-party system. I believe we are at the right moment. Go and vote, to change the status quo, to turn the 4-2 into three Labour seats, two Nationalist, and one independent,” Cassola said.
He concluded that managing to destroy this duopoly would create a significant dent, possibly leading to a change in mind-frame.
