Who is Hermann Schiavone?

Schiavone was born into a traditionally Labour family. However, during his youth he switched to the Nationalist Party contesting his first election in 1987, receiving 348 votes. While he did not contest in 1992, he re-emerged on the ballot sheet in 1996, where he once again gained a few hundred votes.

1998 was a different story. While he failed to get elected in the hotly-contested fifth district, the repercussions of an internal battle with Louis Galea were felt in the following legislature.

When the PN returned to power following Alfred Sant’s short tenure, Schiavone was moved from the Education Division, headed by Galea, to Public Works under Francis Zammit Dimech.

It is not clear whether Schiavone was removed by Galea or whether he asked to be transferred. However, sources have said that the relationship between the pair turned sour given the minimal vote gap between them.

The 2003 allegation and a ban from contesting on the PN ticket

In the run-up to the 2003 election, reports emerged that then PN Leader Eddie Fenech Adami received a letter containing serious allegations about Schiavone, who was immediately precluded from running. His wife, Anne, contested in his stead.

With social media and internet presence being far less prevalent back then, an excerpt from Kulħadd is one of the few references available online about the episode.

He then stepped back from the political sphere, only to re-emerge after the 2008 general election. The fifth district had become a more attractive proposition after Louis Galea, Helen Damato, and Ninu Zammit lost their seats in the area.

It was at this point that he allegedly made a sensational accusation against an MP on the fifth district.  The PN denounced his allegations at the time, to the effect that he was also banned from contesting in 2013.

“It is unacceptable for the Nationalist Party that a serious allegation is made against one of its MPs by a person who then fails to either substantiate the allegation when asked to do so or to withdraw the allegation.”

“Hermann Schiavone is not a candidate of the PN and has been directed not to present himself as one,” the PN said in 2011.

This would mean that he was banned from contesting twice, and by two separate leaders, Eddie Fenech Adami and Lawrence Gonzi.

Schiavone would finally get his chance on the ticket in the 2017 election, a period in which the PN was looking for different faces not associated with the previous establishment. In an ironic twist, Schiavone finally got elected thirty years after he initially contested, in an election which saw his party suffer its greatest defeat.

A Delia-loyalist who ran into hot water

The utter collapse of Simon Busuttil’s leadership and ‘Forza Nazzjonali’ vision opened the doors for PN outsiders desperate to take over their party. An election open to all paid-up members created a space for Adrian Delia, along with his supporters, to take control.

Schiavone was one of them, helping orchestrate his successful campaign. He was then named as the party spokesman for social dialogue.

His position came to a grinding halt after the 17 Black meeting was revealed. However, he still played a role in party affairs, being the first to announce a devastating election result for the PN in the European Elections.

Schiavone would also back Delia in a general council confidence vote, something which critics argued shouldn’t have been allowed due to the pending investigation.

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