Mr Bundy, does this ring a (phone) bell?

John Bundy used to have a thrice-weekly programme on RTK until last July.

Whenever the topic was political, I would phone in to say my bit, which would usually take the form of a series of questions, especially when his guest was from PL plc.

He soon began recognizing my voice before I was half-way into my first question.

On several occasions he would (unbeknown to the listeners) fade me out before I moved on to the second question.

I realized this thanks to the delay system most stations use when taking phone-ins.

After hanging up, I would find on many instances that only one or two questions managed to make it on air.

Another piece of foul play of his was to interrupt me in my second question to say that I had used up the time allotted to each phone-in when most of the other listeners’ calls were much longer than mine.

On one occasion - after having managed to put my questions to his PL plc guest without any dirty tricks from John Bundy - as I put the phone down, to ingratiate himself with his guest, as was his wont, he said to me: “Hux veru li int izzomm malLabour?“

I’m still bitter with myself to this day for having put down that receiver too soon.

My answer to his snide remark, which I’m giving him now, would have been: “Le, John, minix Laburist, imma kont. Jien kont Laburist meta int kellek programm fuq stazzjon politku u minn hin ghal iehor kont issemma kor ta’ hniezer/qzieqez ghax dak kien il-mod tieghek dak iz-zmien ta’ kif tirreferi ghal-Laburisti”.

[“No, John, I’m not Labour, but I used to be.

I used to be Labour at the time you had a programme on a political radio station and from time to time you played for the benefit of listeners a chorus of grunting swine, for that was a penchant of yours at the time of how to refer to Labourites.”]

Mr Bundy, could it be that you did this to my phone calls because way back then you already knew who would replace Mr Anton Attard as CEO at PBS, thus buttressing your credentials as the ideal candidate (in a one-horse race) for the post?

Everyone knows what happened to TIMES TALK. I’m in no way suggesting that the hand that brought the chopper down on it was the same hand that turned that fade-out on me.

Neither am I suggesting that it isn’t.

Yes, Mr Bundy, everyone knows what happened to TIMES TALK, but no one, except the two of us, knows what happened to many of my phone-ins to you.

I am not providing any proof here.

Whether I do, depends on how you respond. Joe Genovese Birkirkara