I went to vote in Ta' Xbiex a few hours ago. I did not see many people at the voting station and I was ready in less than 5 minutes.
Since my wife is still not a Maltese citizen, she was unable to vote. Whilst I was voting inside, she was instructed to stay at a distance of, at least, 50 metres from the voting station. Thinking that I had my mobile phone with me, she sent me a message to let me know that she was going to meet me at home. When I finished voting, I never saw the message since I had left my mobile phone at home! I waited for a couple of minutes near the entrance of the voting station, hoping to get a glimpse of La Delirante. Nothing. When one of the police officers saw me just standing there, he asked me if I had already voted. I replied affirmatively and told him that I was waiting for my wife. He informed me that I could wait for her at a distance of, at least, 50 metres away from where we were standing!
I walked away, hoping that La Delirante was not looking for me inside the building!! I stopped at the street corner, where some political party observers were taking notes. After a couple of minutes, one of them told me, "I think she went home". I had no idea who that man was and I am sure that I looked quite puzzled there. I asked him, "Are you sure that it was her? She was wearing a pink top." The guy replied: "Yes, yes, it was her. I live in the building in front of you and I have often seen you together." Good gosh, I thought to myself! I cannot recall ever seeing the guy and he seems to know about many of my behaviours!!! An excellent example of neighbourhood watch! :-)
When I returned home, I was just zapping from one TV channel to another in order to get the latest news. The different Maltese channels were not saying much. I watched the footage of Dr Gonzi, Dr Muscat, and Dr Abela going to vote. I also heard that compared to the 2004 European Parliament elections, there were an additional 5,000 or so votes that were not collected. This means that even though Malta has been a member of the European Union for 5 years and even though an increasing amount of Maltese legislation is originating in the EU institutions, there are more people who are not interested in the EU today than in 2004.
I just hope that those people who did not bother to collect their vote will not go around complaining that things are bad in Malta and that there is little one could do to change the current state of affairs. I believe that even though one might not agree with all the beliefs associated with a particular political party, it will always be possible to identify a party that shares a good number of one's principles. As we saw in the 2008 general election, every vote counts and every vote is fundamental to either maintain the status quo or to change the way numerous things are being done in this country. Fair enough, the EU Parliament elections should not be regarded as national elections, but with so many laws coming from the EU, many national policies are going to be reflecting decisions that were taken in the EU Parliament.
By the way, for those of you taking a look at the photo posted above, even though there is a PN flag in the background, please rest assured that I did NOT vote for that party! :-))
Since my wife is still not a Maltese citizen, she was unable to vote. Whilst I was voting inside, she was instructed to stay at a distance of, at least, 50 metres from the voting station. Thinking that I had my mobile phone with me, she sent me a message to let me know that she was going to meet me at home. When I finished voting, I never saw the message since I had left my mobile phone at home! I waited for a couple of minutes near the entrance of the voting station, hoping to get a glimpse of La Delirante. Nothing. When one of the police officers saw me just standing there, he asked me if I had already voted. I replied affirmatively and told him that I was waiting for my wife. He informed me that I could wait for her at a distance of, at least, 50 metres away from where we were standing!
I walked away, hoping that La Delirante was not looking for me inside the building!! I stopped at the street corner, where some political party observers were taking notes. After a couple of minutes, one of them told me, "I think she went home". I had no idea who that man was and I am sure that I looked quite puzzled there. I asked him, "Are you sure that it was her? She was wearing a pink top." The guy replied: "Yes, yes, it was her. I live in the building in front of you and I have often seen you together." Good gosh, I thought to myself! I cannot recall ever seeing the guy and he seems to know about many of my behaviours!!! An excellent example of neighbourhood watch! :-)
When I returned home, I was just zapping from one TV channel to another in order to get the latest news. The different Maltese channels were not saying much. I watched the footage of Dr Gonzi, Dr Muscat, and Dr Abela going to vote. I also heard that compared to the 2004 European Parliament elections, there were an additional 5,000 or so votes that were not collected. This means that even though Malta has been a member of the European Union for 5 years and even though an increasing amount of Maltese legislation is originating in the EU institutions, there are more people who are not interested in the EU today than in 2004.
I just hope that those people who did not bother to collect their vote will not go around complaining that things are bad in Malta and that there is little one could do to change the current state of affairs. I believe that even though one might not agree with all the beliefs associated with a particular political party, it will always be possible to identify a party that shares a good number of one's principles. As we saw in the 2008 general election, every vote counts and every vote is fundamental to either maintain the status quo or to change the way numerous things are being done in this country. Fair enough, the EU Parliament elections should not be regarded as national elections, but with so many laws coming from the EU, many national policies are going to be reflecting decisions that were taken in the EU Parliament.
By the way, for those of you taking a look at the photo posted above, even though there is a PN flag in the background, please rest assured that I did NOT vote for that party! :-))
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