The Executive Chairman of the National Orchestra takes a selfie of himself on the loo.

Sigmund Mifsud took a selfie of himself doing his needs on the loo and posted it on Facebook. This story was covered by the Nationalist Party digital portal (21st February 2021). It also brought a public condemnation from at least one academic and other persons having a high position in culture. But the Government and the Department of Culture remained silent on the matter. They failed to take action and this continued to increase the perception that everything goes for the government. Sigmund Mifsud’s behaviour has angered a number of Labourites who love and take culture extremely seriously.

During Roman times, toilets were communal and Roman citizens did their needs in view of one another. Roman public toilets consisted of a big room in which the loos were just holes in a rectangular marble slab. Roman citizens even conducted business while doing their basic needs on the loo. They even passed the sponge, with which they cleaned themselves, to the person sitting next to them as a sign of friendship.

The world has moved forward from those times and in the meantime, a new culture developed where toilets have become a strictly private place. No person in an executive position today will take a photo of himself doing his basic needs and share it on social media. I don’t think that such an action will garner respect to the institution headed by the person concerned.

Yet, this story does not seem to have died out. The fact that the government failed to take any action has angered even further the artistic community in Malta and this portal is informed that an email has also been sent to Prime Minister Robert Abela about this case. Such behaviour by Mifsud was described as being typical of his general attitude of disrespect to the musicians and reflected his way of management of the National Orchestra.