Opposition MPs Joe Cuschieri and Karmenu Vella said that it was the MLP that had set up Air Malta, but in the last 17 years it was the PN who had brought the company to its knees.

In a statement released earlier this week, the two Opposition MPs said they could not understand how the Nationalist government could have no scruples about trying to hoodwink the people of Malta.

Mr Cuschieri and Mr Vella said that over the past 17 years, apart from 22 months, the national airline had been brought to its knees.

“We cannot accept unfounded and partisan accusations made against us by the government in its statement about the Air Malta issue. Attitudes such as these show the lack of credibility and the way the PN government is panic-stricken about the problems it has caused itself,” they said.

The two MPs pointed out that it had given several warnings about potential problems at Air Malta. “It was the PN government which did not heed out warnings. And, despite our attempts, before the last election the government tried to keep the problems under wraps,” said the MLP.

After years of ignoring the truth, they said, the PN was now panicking and trying to shift responsibility for the problems onto the shoulders of the workforce.

“However, we do agree that measures need to be taken to make the company’s operations sustainable and viable. We do agree that Air Malta must be saved, but this must be done by everyone pitching in and sharing the load,” they said.

“We cannot accept only the workers bearing the brunt of the sacrifices that will have to be made as a result of the mess the Nationalist government has got this company into,” said the MLP.

The MPs also said they expected that if the government wanted to be seen to be taking a serious approach to the issue, the person who took a number of strange decisions that cost the company millions of liri should be held accountable. “On this issue, the PN government is still silent.

“The allegation that the MLP would prefer to see Air Malta fold and close-up-shop is absurd and should not and will not be believed by anyone,” they said.

The people of Malta knew who had given birth to the airline and helped it grow, said the two MPs. At the same time, the general public also knew who had ground the company into the dust. “Facts speak for themselves”, they said.

The Nationalist government was being dishonest in trying to put the blame for the situation on the “inefficiency” of the workers. “It is fair to point out that Air Malta has contributed considerably to the country’s economy for years. And it was those same ‘inefficient’ workers who made that contribution,” said the MPs.

They appealed for Air Malta’s workers not to succumb to provocation from other parties who were attempting to stir them up and

create division.

The workers should only obey directives issued by their relevant trade union representatives, said the MPs. They also urged workers to stick together and not allow anyone to chip away at the conditions they had managed to achieve over the years.