Local record store D’Amato Records has waded into a barrage of public mockery by publishing its own joke via a witty image, poking fun at Prime Minister Robert Abela’s over-use of the phrase ‘The Establishment’ at a widely viewed press conference following revelations that former PM Joseph Muscat is facing criminal charges.

While the subject matter of the press conference is about as serious as it gets for the country, many have poked fun at Prime Minister Robert Abela for repeatedly using the phrase when responding to questions from the press, with one news outlet, Lovin Malta, claiming that he used the term at least 47 times, equating to an average of once every 60 seconds.

During the press conference, Dr Abela pointed towards ‘The Establishment’ as being the driving force behind a number of developments. Indeed, he implied that the shadowy forces are behind the timing of the release of a magisterial inquiry that led to charges behind filed against former PM Joseph Muscat, former chief of staff Keith Schembri and former senior minister Konrad Mizzi. He also referred to several journalists as forming part of ‘The Establishment’, as well as a group of people controlling Opposition Leader Bernard Grech.

Blaming the Establishment for a number of society’s ills is a move from Joseph Muscat’s playbook, who routinely accused the Nationalist Party as being part of a political elite that continued to control the country’s more prominent professions, such as the legal profession, business, professional groups and opinion makers.

Meanwhile, sections of the general public are enjoying a light moment amid political turmoil, noting that both of Malta’s major political parties refer to each other as The Establishment, without anybody wanting to claim the title.

What is The Establishment?

In sociological and political terms, the expression is used to describe a dominant social group of elite individuals who control an organisation, business, or even a country.

Those who accuse others of being The Establishment are then able to claim themselves as ‘the underdogs’, beating all odds when winning a victory.