PN deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami said yesterday that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat tried to ridicule Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil but ended up losing thousands of votes to him in the local council elections.
Speaking during the general council, with the theme ‘Inkomplu Nagħmlu Differenza’, he said that on 25 May he will be marking two years since he was appointed deputy leader.
He said that until a few weeks ago, there were some who thought that the PN won’t achieve good results, but since the local council elections, the PN is back in business.
“This government is inaugurating projects which were started by a PN government,” he said, referring to the energy interconnector, and the soon to be opened science centre in San Gwann and Coast Road project.
“We had a government which inaugurated one project after the other and now we have a government which inaugurates PN projects only,” he said.
(Former Minister Manuel Mallia)
He said former Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia destroyed the Police Force and Army in the few months he was minister, adding that the new minister – Carmelo Abela - should have sorted out the mess of his predecessor but hasn’t started yet.
Dr Fenech Adami referred to the Commander of the AFM – who he said is a friend of the Prime Minister’s family – and who was given the top position for this reason. But the new minister has not acted on this either, he said.
(Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi)
As for Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi’s wife Sai, he said it is unfair that Ms Mizzi is given 13,000 euros a month for nothing. “No-one knows where she is or her office is for that matter – this is a scandal in itself.”
On the new proposed university at Zonqor Point, Dr Muscat said that an American university would be setting up shop in Malta but then it transpired that it is a Jordanian contractor who wants to take our land away.
He said that Dr Muscat is out there alone with 'il-Qahbu', referring to Edwin Bartolo – a 1980s thug – who was spotted clapping for Dr Muscat during a PL political activity earlier this month.
Outgoing PN secretary-general Chris Said (photo) highlighted that a year ago the PN made a set of amendments to the statute to help bring the party closer to the people and today such amendments are being implemented during the executive committee election.
He thanked the 41 candidates who are contesting today’s election.
This year, the PN is marking 135 years since its inception, he said, adding that the party changed the face of the country.
Dr Said pointed out that when he became secretary general he knew that he would have to face a number of challenges and take certain tough decisions – ones which needed to be taken despite the fact that some decisions were not taken lightly.
He mainly referred to the measures the party had to implement to keep the party’s media financially viable.
He said that two years ago, when the PN lost the election, it was one of the most difficult times the party went through.
Dr Said explained it is useless trying to convey a message out there when the internal structures are not strong and this is why the PN organised itself.
“From the outset, PN leader Simon Busuttil (photo) emphasised that nobody should be excluded and the process to widen the participation of those who can vote in the council general election started, opening up the voting for party leadership to all paid party members as a result of amendments made to the statute,” he said.
As for the MEP elections, he said that the results of such elections gave the party courage and determination to achieve better results during the local council elections in which the PN reduced the gap.
PN MP Toni Bezzina (photo) said that the Labour Party has been in power for two years and not a day goes by without a scandal emerging or a proposal made which shocks the nation.
He said that the Prime Minister was denying farmers their daily income by proposing to take over the land at Zonqor Point.
“Sur Muscat, the honeymoon is way over,” Mr Bezzina said.
Mr Bezzina also claimed that former Parliamentary Secretary Franco Mercieca wants to return to Cabinet.
MP Antoine Borg said (photo) that the party is at crossroads in terms of having to take the right decisions but believes that the PN leadership is moving in the right direction.
Mr Borg said that the PN feels that the management and control of Air Malta should remain in the hands of entities which have the national interest at heart. The PN, he continued, is in favour of strategic alliances as long as they make sense.
But he said that the PN is against any measures which will reduce the national airline’s fleet, adding that the Opposition was not consulted on matters concerning the airline.
PN should show solidarity towards Giovanna Debono
Mosta mayor Edwin Vassallo said that that the party should show solidarity towards former minister Giovanna Debono (photo) – "a person this government has decided to crucify".
MP Robert Cutajar said that what the PN built in the social sector has gone down the drain under this administration. He said that the PN will support initiatives which improve the lives of persons with a disability.
He said that if the government thinks that the Opposition will not be scrutinising government entities, it is mistaken.
MP George Pullicino said that the PN will continue to make a difference even in the lives of those who did not support the party. The PN, he said, made a difference in the south such as the development of a sports complex in Kirkop and Cottonera, the development of MCAST in Paola, the Maritime project in Birgu, the restoration of Fort St Angelo, the elderly homes in Bormla and Zejtun, the embellishment of Marsaxlokk’s promenade, the roads which lead from Valletta to the south, the family park in Marsascala which initially was a rubbish dump, oil tanking, SmartCity, a programme combating absenteeism in schools, among other projects.
“Two projects this government pledged it would stick to in the south is the BWSC gas conversion and the building of a new power station but the government failed in its promise,” he said.
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