The Prime Minister yesterday appealed for political jibes about Nationalist supporters having ‘something wrong with their DNA’ to stop, saying that the Maltese were one people.

Dr Gonzi said that such cat calls should stop as it only promoted division, adding that he did not want to relive the situation of the 1980s.

The Prime Minister was speaking during a live televised interview which was conducted by journalist Lourdes Pullicino in Birkirkara yesterday.

He turned up and walked through the Railway Gardens accompanied by Mrs Gonzi and PN secretary general Joe Saliba.

Dr Gonzi reminded the people of Birkirkara that a former leader used to live in this town. “We remember the attacks on his house and the way in which his family was terrorised and yet the Malta Labour Party has never had the courage or decency to make an apology,” he said.

He also appealed for MLP protagonists to stop telling people that there was “something wrong with their DNA. Why are you doing this? Why are you telling our people such things, it’s not right. We may have different views on politics but there is no need for such declarations,” he said.

He said there was a gulf in the difference between the policies and proposals of the MLP and the PN. “If you vote for MLP it will mean an extra year at school for each child. We do not agree and we want our children to succeed,” he said.

Dr Gonzi said that the MLP did not believe in the capabilities of the people of Malta and Gozo. “It’s always negative. But we can say that we have always looked ahead at challenges in a bid to improve. The MLP merely shoots everything down and tells us that we are not good enough for Europe, that we cannot compete and that we cannot improve our quality of life,” said Dr Gonzi.

He also said that the government was putting money back into people’s pockets. “We want to give more money back to people so they can spend more. We want people to work more and pay fewer taxes and that’s what we are doing,” he said.

Dr Gonzi said that the MLP’s new start was nothing more than turning the clock back. “Look at their proposal on overtime, they want to remove tax on it, but keep pay at normal rate. We thought that those days were over,” he said. The Prime Minister said that if people cast their vote in favour of the PN, they will immediately feel the benefits within 24 hours. “Think about it, the choice is up to you. If you want a good and prosperous future for your children, then you know what you choice should be,” he said.

Environment Minister George Pullicino said that the government did its duty in relation to the environment, saying that it had always been a focal point of the last administration.

He invited all environmentalists with sincere intentions to work with a PN government, saying that there was a lot in the pipeline. He said that one of the most significant achievements was closing down Maghtab and now using it as an energy source. This, he said, was also happening at the Sant Antnin recycling plant. He said that if the government had listened to the Malta Labour Party and decided to keep using Maghtab, it would be 10-storeys higher than it is now, whereas thanks to the PN it was being turned into a national park.

Mr Pullicino said that more than 50,000 trees had been planted in Malta during the last three years. He referred to a chance meeting with a 12-year-old boy who said to him: “Cool man, thanks for everything!”

Former Minister and now Prime Minister’s advisor John Dalli said that in order to succeed, one has to be ambitious. He played on a previous political assault by the Malta Labour Party and said: “Yes, our DNA is indeed different. We believe in people and we believe in our ability to beat challenges and succeed.” Mr Dalli said that a lot of progress had been made, but now more steps forward needed to be taken.

PN candidate Malcolm Mifsud spoke about the various projects which were completed during the last legistlature, especially those tied in to greenery in an urban environment. He also said that a total of 950 residential roads will be resurfaced by the end of this year.

PN candidates Alexei Dingli and John Bonello also spoke during yesterday’s event with the former focusing on the environment while the latter spoke about education.