Nov 04 - GSLP-Liberal Alliance Candidates Sign On For General Election
The 10 GSLP-Liberal Alliance candidates who currently make up government put their names forward for the general elections at Parliament House today.
The leader of the GSLP and caretaker Chief Minister Fabian Picardo, together with the caretaker Deputy Chief Minister and leader of the Liberal Party Dr Joseph Garcia were among those who signed the nomination papers.
Albert Isola, who has been serving as the Minister of Finance following the death of Charles Bruzon, has also signed on for the general elections to be held on Thursday 26th November.
Speaking to Your Gibraltar TV, Mr Picardo said he is looking forward to a clean election and hopes for another four years in government.
He said: “This is fantastic, I am so happy that I’ve got the same team – these are great ministers. All of them can be singled out for individual praise, and they have made it possible for Gibraltar to deliver with energy, with vigour, with hard work, Gibraltar is very lucky to have the same slate prepared to stand again. I am very lucky as leader to have the same team to stand again, and this shows the unity between us.”
Mr Picardo said voters have a choice between voting for an untested team of individuals with the GSD or to choose a solid team who have worked solidly for Gibraltar for the past four years.
When asked why the electorate should vote for him, Mr Picardo said: “I think I have demonstrated that I can be trusted, I have demonstrated that I’ve delivered a collegiate government where every minister has been fully involved in the decision making – I am not a one-man government as was the case under the GSD. We work together to deliver the best results.
“And what we promised to do in all areas we have done, or explained why it cannot be done. Therefore when voters look at the manifestos, and see the GSD approach their manifesto as a wish list of what they might do, they see we approach our manifesto as a list of commitments that we enter into as a contract with the people of Gibraltar.
“There are things that we have done, in my view, that have really helped to lay the strongest foundations for our nation, for our children and for our children’s children.”
Mr Picardo believes people are going to vote for the Alliance in even larger numbers because of the “lies” coming from the GSD party with regards to the safety of the LNG power station and a lack of transparency and openness.
Mr Picardo slams the GSD criticism of the government use of Credit Finance loans by raising the loan to OEM which cost £11million of taxpayers money.
“I ask a direct question to Mr Feetham and Mr Clinton about how they feel about the £4million they lent OEM when they were in government, which they lost of taxpayer’s money. How do they feel about that? Will they apologise to the Gibraltarian public?” Mr Picardo adds.
If the GSLP-Liberal Alliance is voted into power for another four years, Mr Picardo said voters can expect a clear commitment to deliver their manifesto.
With election fever grabbing politicians and voters alike, Mr Picardo said: “I think this election campaign has to be a clean campaign, but we have to talk about the issues and we have to be tough with each other about the issues – we don’t have to descend into insults.
“I’m just interested in getting answers to questions. The GSD complain about our loans and say we lack transparency, but when we ask them questions they don’t answer.”
Dr Joseph Garcia, leader of the Liberal Party, said the Alliance will be standing this year’s election on their record after having spent four years in Government.
He said: “I think we have done a huge amount in a very short period of time that people will see and it’s not just physical projects. There’s also been a huge transformation in the way Gibraltar is being governed – to bring democracy to the people and allow them an input for things that affect them, for example in the planning process.
“If we compare what we have now to what we inherited we are light years ahead.”
Standing alongside nine candidates that he has already worked with, means that the team that takes office will have the experience of working together already. “It’s a question of building on the strong foundations we have laid already. Across the whole government, we intend to carry out improvements on what we have already achieved,” Dr Garcia said. “People should vote for us on our record, on our achievements and also that we are going to do what we set out in our manifesto.”
Joe Bossano will be standing elections for the 12th time. He said his portfolio as a minister was to concentrate on the performance of the economy, and it’s his job to make sure the money is there to allow for essential works to be carried out.
He said: “I don’t mean to persuade people to vote for me, they have voted for me for the past 43 years and it’s not just them it’s their children and their grandchildren and whole generations within families.
“If they are not convinced, the answer is they just have to look at our performance and see what we have achieved.
Gilbert Licudi said the GSLP-Liberal Alliance values stand in line with the values that Gibraltar represents.
He added: “We have done incredible work over the past four years, but we’ve just started on the political process. The political work of a party doesn’t get finished within four years. Even though we have actually transformed Gibraltar in just four years, we have got some way to go yet.”
He explained that the last time Gibraltar was transformed in a short period of time was when the GSLP were voted into power in 1988.
“We formed a great team, and it’s great to see that we have exactly the same team, and that the same people who want to continue to serve Gibraltar,” he said.
Albert Isola was voted into government after the bi-election following Mr Bruzon’s death more than two years ago. He explained that as a minister he had extremely big shoes to fill, and he “approached his work in the teachings of Charles”.
He said: “In terms of this campaign, we will be telling people about the work we have done – a lot of it is public, a lot of it isn’t, why it is that we’ve done these things and what they can expect from the future.
“When you look at the criticism that the GSD is putting at us – that we spend too much money – and then when you look at their last four years in power and they actually spent more than we did, and we’ve made more than they did, I think it all bodes well for the future.
“There’s a good management of the economy, there’s a very strong team, a lot of competent people with a huge amount of energy, and above all else a desire to make Gibraltar a better place for all of us to live in. That is ultimately what we all want, and if elected this term, we’ll continue to do so.”
With regards to this year’s election campaign, Samantha Sacramento said: “First and foremost, we are a team. So that being said, we are the team who fought and won the election the last time, and that in itself brings continuity.
“Our mandate remains the same, and what we aim to do is to continue to deliver as we have over the past four years. We have done extremely well in this term of office, given all that problems that we faced when we came into office. We’ve done a lot of good things, particularly for the Gibraltarian and for the community, because we are a party who delivers for everybody. The longer that we are in office, the more good things we can do for the people.
“People don’t just have to vote for me, they need to vote for us. As a team we have proven that we have been able to deliver.”
Paul Balban said one of the highlights over the past four years has been rolling out the new ID card system. He has also put forward a number of road safety measures and has made a number of changes to the traffic plan.
“I am very happy to be part of the same team, I think we work very well in a team and I look forward to standing this year’s elections with them,” he said.
“I am hoping the electorate appreciate the work I have personally done and trust me to continue doing the work I have already done. But also show their support for us by voting for the 10 of us, as a whole.”
Neil Costa said Gibraltar has had a good four years to assess his performance as a minister, people know the kind of minister he is, and what they can expect, and hopes to continue to serve the public in the same way.
He added: “I think that in the portfolios I was given, I have been able to deliver what the manifesto says I should deliver.
“I have maintained an open door policy throughout my four years, I’ve been extremely accessible to people who want to meet with me, and I think the people can expect a government that will present a manifesto that will be a pledge to fulfill and not like it’s been in a past which is a wish list.
“Given in our view that we have laid the strongest foundations for Gibraltar, if re-elected we will continue to build on those strong foundations.”
Dr John Cortes said: “I would like to think I represent belief in what I work on, I care for the community genuinely and I try to assist in any way I can to make people’s lives better. Health and environment are very crucial in people’s quality of life.
“I’ve learnt a lot in the past four years so I think I’m now even more ready than four years ago to be able to re-double my efforts and be able to achieve more things for the next four years.”
With regards to the LNG power station, and the criticism from the GSD over the installation of the power station in Gibraltar, Dr Cortes said: “I have spent my whole life fighting for a safe environment – I would not be supporting that I’ve had the slightest suspicion could be of danger to the community.
“I am completely convinced that this is the way forward, I hope that the electorate will see that this is the right choice for Gibraltar, and we will be able to move forward and look at it being the right decision, and so that polluted air and power cuts can be a thing of the past.”
Of his achievements in health care, Dr Cortes outlined his work in bringing a chemotherapy unit to Gibraltar, the introduction of an organ transplant service, 1000 more operations this year from last year and waiting times, but his biggest challenge so far has been to make the healthcare system more user-friendly.
Steven Linares said he would want the electorate to vote for him because the Alliance has done a very good job over the past four years, and is happy that his party has placed the confidence in him to continue for another for years.
He appreciates the hard work the government has carried out in fulfilling their manifesto commitments, but says another four years in government will help Gibraltar further.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done,” Mr Linares added. “If people were to vote for me, they can expect a person who has given four years and their job is not yet finished, therefore I want to be given another four years to prove that I can do my work and serve the community for the next four years.”
The GSLP-Liberal Alliance will be holding a public meeting on Thursday 12th November at the Queen’s Cinema. They will be handing out a copy of their manifesto then.
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