So much for democracy. So much for openness. So much for the lofty speeches about “freedom of expression” and “renewing the party.”
As the Nationalist Party lurches into yet another leadership contest, this time between Adrian Delia and Alex Borg, what should have been a moment of renewal has instead become a grotesque display of censorship and fear. The PN’s Electoral Commission has now laid out its “rules” for the race:
- No debates between candidates.
- No journalists from Labour-aligned media.
- No appearances on ONE TV.
- No unsanctioned interviews.
- And every media engagement must be pre-approved.
This isn’t a leadership contest. This is a tightly choreographed farce. A race where the candidates are shackled and muzzled, watched over like prisoners in their own party.
The Nationalist Party has become the political equivalent of a gated compound, patrolled by a paranoid elite — the Establishment, that radical minority which has hijacked the PN from the inside. They don’t trust their own members. They don’t trust open debate. They don’t even trust the people they’re asking to vote for them.
What we’re seeing here is the final consequence of the PN’s ‘minimalist’ vision of democracy — one where members are allowed to exist, but not to speak. One where ideas are allowed to be raised, but not challenged. One where freedom is preached, but control is the daily reality.
It’s a political doctrine that tolerates agency only when it’s convenient. Party members are invited to vote, but only after being told what not to say, where not to go, and who not to speak to. They’re granted the illusion of participation, but forbidden from reflecting critically on the very processes they’re part of.
What kind of democracy is this?
If internal democracy is worth defending — if party members are moral agents, not sheep — then they must be free to speak up not just during votes, but after them. They must be able to ask questions, challenge the narrative, and express doubt. That’s what democratic responsibility looks like.
But in today’s PN, such reflection is seen as betrayal. Critical thinking is punished. Dissent is forbidden. This is not a healthy political movement. This is a party so frightened of its own members that it gags them in public, silences them in private, and wraps every contest in bubble wrap and barbed wire.
And then they wonder why they keep losing elections.
Let it be clear: the Nationalist Party is not just out of sync with the country — it’s out of sync with its own values, with its own base, and with the principles of a real, breathing democracy. The leadership race of 2025 is not a democratic exercise. It’s a hostage situation dressed up as a renewal process.
The more they talk about freedom, the more tightly they grip the chains.
And the voters? They’re watching.
