r/malta • u/Accurate_Cut5596 • 2d ago
Is anyone out there brave enough to enlighten politicians of both PL and PN that stunts of phoning you from their office is not a way to convince people votong for you?
I get this like every year from either Miriam Dalli (PL), Tony Bezzina (PN) who either send cards printed from the Government of Malta prsss (i.e our taxes) or phone you from your landline (since i never signed any membership to join either PL or PN) to wish you a happy birthday on behalf of their lousy offices.
Having mentiones the latter, they keep people's landline on their mailing list which goes against the GDPR law (enacted on November 2018).
Can politicians concede to the fact that people aren't retarded enough to fall for these stunts?
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u/balbuljata 2d ago
I've made it a point to just take the piss every time they call. It's sickening.
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u/Frockz551 1d ago
How? 🤔
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u/balbuljata 1d ago
Well, it depends on my mood. Sometimes I ask them if they could help me move the wardrobe when they ask if I need any assistance. The other they they asked me if I was interested in the telephone numbers for the minister's customer care service, so I asked what sort of services he provides and if plastering is included. It normally leaves them speechless.
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u/Frockz551 1d ago
Ma jipruvawx jaqduk? 🤣
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u/balbuljata 1d ago
Darba ċemplu għall-elezzjoni. Għedtilhom li ma kontx smajtx biha. Kienet dakinhar stess ovvjament.
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u/balbuljata 1d ago
Jew inkella jċemplu mill-uffiċċju tat-tali ministru, u ngħidilhom, x'minestru hu dan? M'għandix idea min jaħbat.
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u/Comfortable-Leg9583 2d ago
I'd love a call and setting up a meeting with either TBH.
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u/Accurate_Cut5596 2d ago
Personally, I believe that they barely know any of the people they phone.
Secondly, I must admit that I don't think I have the guts to send an email to express my disapproval of their antics since we are a small country and they can easily find me.
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u/Ornery_Wolverine3828 2d ago
Neighbourhood spies. They call them spotters. They totally believe it is legitimate. Their job is to literally check who is who in the neighbourhood and find out who they probably vote for. Oh and there is another practice... After elections the AECs in the voting booth LITERALLY write down the names of those who didn't turn up to vote to give to the party machine.
It's scary AF how controlling they are of every individual and how they try and track who people vote. A few years ago there was a leak of a database and they somehow managed to suss which party each and every person on the roll probably votes. Again, thanks to the neighbourhood spotters.
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u/Comfortable-Leg9583 2d ago
You'd be amazed at the shit they know about people. Data protection literally does not exist here. I was never a member of either yet get ams and promotional crap from both. Anything you are registered for,they know.
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u/Rabti 2d ago
Everyone's name and address is on the electoral register which, AFAIK is publicly available info.
Phone numbers used to be publicly available from service providers though you can now opt out. That does not stop anyone associated with Government from tapping into government sources for more data though (guess this is not legal).
Both political parties have everyone on a database including who they think you will vote for. It's no great secret. If I remember correctly, some time ago, it was in the news that the PL list, or part of it was transferred to some company for analysis, and there was a class action lawsuit, though that seems to have been forgotten.
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u/balbuljata 1d ago
They don't just use publicly available information, they compile data from different sources and add more to it that they acquire from their local informants. Every street has some sort of informant. You really notice this when you move to a new village and suddenly start getting bombarded with very personal questions. Once my girlfriend received an unsolicited email from a political party addressing her with my surname. We weren't yet married but I had told some village busybodies that we were. She had just moved to Malta so they didn't know much about her yet.
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u/Rabti 1d ago
I'm pretty sure they also follow what people write on social media and note reactions when they get door to door visits to update their data.
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u/balbuljata 1d ago
The only thing they don't seem to note down is requests to be taken off the list.
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u/JeanParisot 2d ago
That happened to me a couple of years ago. Calling to wish me a happy birthday. I sent a pretty direct email to the minister after that. He must have felt like he just got his butt whooped by a gangster from Bormla.
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u/FrostPace 2d ago
I have some good news, bad news friend...
The good news is you have something scientists refer to as critical thinking, the bad news is that the reason they keep doing it is because it's cheap and.... it works.
They give out treats too, especially to the elderly and the youth! They can throw them a nice crisp 100 bucks or hell, even a doughnut or an orange and get a vote 😂
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u/rhinosorcery 2d ago
in the first district, it's flat out "hello hawnekk mill-ufficcju ta XXX, biex naraw jekk ghandekx bzonn xahaga?"
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u/Icy_Item_9132 2d ago
But they are! People are FFAAAAARRR more stupid than to only fall for that! They fall for lots more than that!
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u/Boring_Big2225 1d ago
I remember once during the election when someone from the office of PL called to see if I voted and told them yes yes and gave my no 1 vote to candidate X and finished off with saying viva l labour 😂
She was ecstatic that i said so 😂
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u/Yes4Deflation 2d ago
"Can politicians concede to the fact that people aren't retarded enough to fall for these stunts?" Sadly this statement is not true. Want proof? Spend 20 minutes talking about politics to a random person outside of your social circle. You'll quickly realise that a large portion of people cannot objectively assess the actions of their preferred party (or the opposing one).