The piece is written by a regular contributor who has adopted the identity of Tyndareus and apologises to Edgar Allan Poe for the heading.

Some would say that you cannot expect a snake other than to hiss and slither. That is his nature. So even though the situation is dire and most did not expect it to be such a mess of biblical proportions, the writing was on the wall since before Adrian Delia’s election as PN Leader.

In his contribution entitled Physics, Manuel Delia once again mentions the real blight (my words, not his) behind the current miserable state of the PN, i.e. Pierre Portelli. He is the apparent ‘mastermind’ – and I use that term loosely – of the cabal running the show at Dar Ċentrali.

For those who, like me, have known Pierre Portelli for decades, we all knew the guy had the gift of the gab and that low-level type of intelligence which most of the time has allowed him to get his foot through the door. The problem is, what happens once he slips in? What then?

What happens is the utter dismal failure of a party organizational structure, crumbling under its very own weight of sheer incompetence and massive conflicts of interests.

Where to now? Various solutions have been mooted. In my view, apart from getting rid of this band of thieves who have hijacked the party, it is imperative that we go back to basics. In my book, this is the appointment of a Secretary-General who can rebuild from the ashes of what once was a well-oiled political machine. If this is done with the appointment of an interim leader or not is secondary.

And by the way. Yet again I end on a note for Robert Arrigo. A group of pensioners and housewives playing tombola is aeons away from anything you should call “alive and kicking”. You are either trying to con yourself or others. If the former, seek help… if the latter, just pack up and leave with the rest of them.