On his X account, Prime Minister Robert Abela wrote the following:
Why is it that he is describing poverty [or lack of] in terms of statistics, as if people are just a number and as if success is measured by the statistician’s ruler?
Why is it that he refers to poverty as ‘material and social deprivation’ only? There are so many facets to poverty.
Can I ask our prime minister what does he mean when he speaks of and refers to poverty?
I hope that we do not hear the same argument of the popolin who parrots the much and the same repeated statement of the pro-business regime: the restaurants are always full. Lol. Funny how I never hear ‘the valleys are always full’ or ‘campsites are always full.’ Are there any other places where the Maltese herd can flock to except restaurants, so that they can continue to milk the economy and the businesses? Of course they are full. There aren’t much other options.
And yet, our Prime Minister does not knock on people’s doors all year round to see poverty, hear poverty, smell poverty, and touch poverty. And yet, he speaks poverty through statistics.
How many Maltese families have to work two jobs to make ends meet? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese pensioners have to continue working post-retirement? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese pensioners are leaving Malta (and Europe), to settle in a cheaper country abroad, like Tunisia? I suggest you go for a month to Tunes and count the new European faces that you encounter daily – Europeans who have left their country so that they can live better.
How many Maltese people of all ages are living in solitude? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese people are homeless? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese adults ended up in difficulty after going through the breakdown of their marriage? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese families hardly make it till the end of the month? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese people are renting at the minimum rent one finds on the property market, which is that of €750 monthly, to have only a few hundred left from an average income of €1300 for the rest of the month? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese people have to sacrifice almost everything in order to buy the necessities, especially during these times of inflation? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese people are renting and sharing an apartment with two other people or more? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese people are living in garages? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese couples would like to have another child, yet they cannot afford a larger family? Isn’t this poverty for you?
How many Maltese young people cannot afford to buy property? Isn’t this poverty for you?
What is the least amount that one can buy a small apartment for, today? Isn’t this poverty for you?
And if we have to tap into the morality and values of a nation, how many are poor morally and spiritually? Isn’t this a poor nation for you?
Prime Minister Robert Abela, not everyone was born into families with a stable financial flow, and not everyone found the bed already laid.
Prime Minister Robert Abela, not everyone has the luxury of having two properties, one in which to live and one to rent out, while sailing on a private boat at each occasion desired so to escape the hustle and bustle of this small island. Up until twenty years ago this country was peaceful but look at it now – it is densely populated thanks to mass immigration with the blessing of the government. And the gentiles who do not have a boat cannot escape from this hustle and bustle! In summer, they have to be packed like sardines on our small and beautiful beaches!
So please ground yourself and put yourself in the shoes of those who touch, hear, see, taste and speak true poverty every day.