I came across this article today, in which the Government is proudly announcing how successful its scheme to get young people to do voluntary work has been. There is just one fly in the ointment. The young people were paid a stipend of 270 Euros a month.

A mere token, you might say, but still, it’s money. In my world, voluntary work is just that – voluntary, i.e. you don’t get paid. And as well-meaning as this scheme may have been, I think it has rather defeated the whole purpose of what it means to be a volunteer to help others in need.  We are already facing a generation which is highly materialistic and in too many cases, downright selfish. So how are we going to instill in them the value of doing something without getting anything in return, except for the “reward” that you have helped others?

It seems to  me that unless we get back to the basics of what it means to be kind and generous with one’s time, we are only going to keep feeding into this “me” culture, which wakes up every morning purely concerned with the notion of “what’s in it for me?”.  From what I see around me, it is precisely this “me” culture (coupled with greed) which has done so much damage to Maltese society.

And while the Government scheme may have lured young people into volunteering their time over the summer, now that they have been paid for it, it is highly unlikely they will want to ever do anything altruistic for free.