As one angry and deeply upset member said, “it’s like calling us all thieves; because according to them, we must all be aware of the rampant “corruption” they appear to believe exists within the party, and we are tolerating it. It was his belief that such statements were inflammatory and that an apology was in order.

The truth is that if they are truly thought to hold water, they should have been investigated well before now. This makes it all sound like desperate party pranks in the face of the up coming elections; and reminds me of what one party, once in power, deigned to call the membership of the GSLP/Liberals which was not only discriminatory, but hugely offensive to all upstanding citizens who happened to have an allegiance to said party.

AS OLD AS THE HILLS

At the same time, when the word “cronyism” is mentioned, what some people tend to forget is that since the early days of politics in Gibraltar, there have always been rumours arising from all the different parties that have been in power, of certain individuals taking advantage of their position and making a mint from contracts awarded them.

This has never been a secret; because let’s face it this is a small place, however much the word nation may imply, and everyone knows the affairs of others. It has always been said that it’s not about what you know, but who you know. It’s as old as the hills! One might be tempted to think that sometimes this matter of cronyism is highlighted by those who have felt aggrieved because they lost out on the tender; or because they believed they could have done it better and therefore deserved it more; or because they were simply envious.

I have learnt in life that to get on you need to have connections. This is something that has been going on all over the world since time immemorial.

FACT OF THE MATTER

Then again, nepotism, is a natural part of life and has a history that runs long and worldwide. In some countries it is a way of life and even regarded positively. Having said that, on occasions when the favoured recipient isn’t qualified, then it has a negative association; as tends to happen often in politics in Spain, for example. Then it naturally causes friction and resentment.

The fact of the matter is that sometimes the person brought in, who happens to be closely associated with the business of the enterprise, can bring valuable social assets to the position. At the end of the day the way people respond to nepotism, depends largely on the qualifications and self awareness of the candidate in question; as in all fairness it should always be the case that the best man or woman for the job ends up getting it.

I know that when filming abroad, I soon learnt that the director in question would always choose those he wanted around him to accompany him on shoots. Not only because they were the best as far as he was concerned, but because he could put his trust in them and knew they would not let him down and would deliver on time.

On the other hand one has to be practical and realize that in a small community like ours, most families are linked somewhere along the line. It is unreasonable to think otherwise. Who has not heard say at some time or other of the police force, that what we need are officers from the outside who aren’t related to anyone locally, and therefore should not have to worry about giving a fine for bad parking or speeding etc to the person concerned. Similarly there will always be someone to say “Claro” she or he got a job in Government say, because her parents are friends of; or because the sister or brother of so and so is married to the head of the department etc etc.

It would be highly unlikely that however far back one went, one could undoubtedly find some distant relative connection. However, in truth, this is not always the case; because there was a time once when Gibraltarians who had worked and lived outside Gibraltar, say the UK for a number of years, could not be eligible for a job locally on their return.

This happened to someone in my family who, when confronted with the dire need of having to look after ailing parents and at the same time was in need for financial reasons, of having to hold down some kind of job; no help was forthcoming, despite the family ties to the then Chief Minister!

RUBBISHING!

Ladies and gentlemen, let’s be done with the chachara; the accusations and rubbishing what others have done, and instead get down to the business of offering the people what they believe they need. Anything else simply distracts attention from a wider malaise that is facing us head on; and will be there after the elections; which is Brexit; and we must also look to those who have this subject well covered.

Surely what any of us wants is an assurance that the life of this community; the community of all of us, continues to thrive; that steps are and have been being taken to smooth any rough passage emanating from across the way; that we feel safe in our hometown, and that our children’s future, is in good hands.

11-10-2019 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR