His Facebook profile currently looks like one that belongs to some raving madman, hell bent on the destruction of those who dare question his beloved leader.

But as a former union boss (even if a very controversial one), Tony Zarb is expected to preach unity, not divisiveness. On top of everything he is expected to stand up for the weak and poor workers, who obey the law while struggling to make ends meet, not the strong and rich politicians and business people who open up secret companies to hide their money in.

Zarb, who served as GWU Secretary General for almost two decades, has brought shame on this country by launching into a vicious attack not only on a German MEP who is part of the European Parliament Committee investigating the Panama Papers (another episode that shamed us abroad), but also on PN MEPs Roberta Metsola and David Casa, who also spoke at this week’s plenary session in Strasbourg.

During that session Prime Minister Joseph Muscat came under fire over his refusal to sack Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi – despite the revelation that they had opened companies in Panama and being the subject of damning FIAU reports on the subjects of kickbacks and money laundering.

Langen was particularly irritated at the fact that Muscat has so far refused to appear before the PANA committee. He blasted the Maltese PM for showing disdain to the EP, telling him he would not get away scot free.

The reaction was typically Maltese: The PM sniggered and claimed to be the poor victim of fake news, the Labour MEPs ridiculously claimed that the PN had tried to turn the EP against poor Malta and the rabble then took to Facebook to insult Mr Langen on his personal Facebook page.

Then Tony Zarb stepped into the fray, using unsavoury adjectives such as ‘traitors, liars and clowns.’

In another Facebook rant he claimed that Werner Langen is a paid Nationalist Party “satellite.”

Zarb should just stop treating the people who look up to him like idiots. It is people like Zarb, and not the German MEP, who are doing a disservice to this country, by closing an eye to corruption and trying to shut down all that dare speak about it.

In other posts he actually incited people against Metsola and Casa, saying that when they arrive back in Malta they deserve to get a traitor’s welcome. On his Facebook profile there was a heated discussion, with many suggesting that the PN MEPs should be welcomed back with a barrage of eggs and tomatoes.

To make matters worse, when contacted by this newspaper yesterday, Zarb said he had no remorse, that he would keep on saying whatever he felt like saying and that he would “not forgive the traitors.”

Hate speech is completely unacceptable but it is, sadly, not surprising when it comes from someone affiliated with the General Workers’ Union. It is very similar to the tone used by the editor of L-Orizzont – the newspaper owned and published by the same union. Until last week that newspaper, in its editorials, was calling for our heads to roll, because we chose to speak against corruption. The tone of those editorials, which branded independent journalists, including people who work for this newspaper, as “traitors” and “snakes” who stood in the way of progress, was so extreme that the GWU disassociated itself from them. Joseph Muscat also said, when asked, that he did not agree with that kind of language.

But both the PM and the GWU should do a lot more to calm people down and eradicate this culture of them and us, of branding a traitor anyone who dares speak up on matters that effect every single one of us, including those low-income workers who pay their taxes to the last cent. It is useless to speak about national reconciliation but then allow the people around you, and the people who worship you as a god, to engage in this kind of hostile behaviour.

So yes, instead of lashing out against those who do not share his political beliefs, Tony Zarb should start speaking out against corruption, against those who opened up shady financial structures in foreign jurisdictions, to the detriment of thousands of law-abiding working class citizens he is supposed to defend.