The great political dynasties say the Kennedys and the Bushes, are famously careful to arrange marriages to further their political aims. They are the heirs of the numbered kings of old who married daughters and sisters to secure alliances and seal political pacts.
The Labour Party’s Alex Saliba got married this weekend. My sincere congratulations to him and his new life partner. I hope they have many years of happiness ahead.
In the meantime, by the stroke of the marriage registrar’s pen, Dr Saliba has now shot up on his constituents’ ballot sheet. He took his wife’s surname now making him Dr Alex Agius Saliba. His new initials, AA, are the most coveted political asset for anyone wanting to get elected in our Single Transferable Vote system.
Candidates with such fortuitous initials inherit votes of voters who run out of specific favourites on their ballot sheet and proceed to rank all other candidates from their favourite political party randomly. Randomly in most people’s behaviour normally means in alphabetical order from top to bottom.
If this was a survival of the fittest game, politicians are more likely to flourish if they are in the very first chapter of the phonebook rather than languishing somewhere halfway, like the Salibas.
So happy days for the new Dr Agius Saliba who consummated his wedding night by rushing to update his social network profiles with his new brand.
