People are fed up with hearing government ministers refer to things that happened pre-2013 as an excuse, or as a way to deviate from current issues.

This practice was one that was happily employed by Joseph Muscat throughout his tenure as Prime Minister, and continues to be employed now.

As an example, just yesterday during the Parliamentary Question session in Parliament a small argument erupted over the handing over of Miżieb and L-Aħrax to the FKNK, to which PL MP Anthony Agius Decelis said that the sites were run by the FKNK for years but the PN did nothing about it. The fact that the land was administered by the FKNK does not necessarily mean that handing over the land to the FKNK through the formal agreement was the right thing to do. The way the situation in these two areas has been handled over the years was already a point of controversy.

During the same debate, Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia proceeded to ask Thake what the PN would do if he is elected on the deal, whether he would scrap it. The latter is a valid question which the PN should answer.

But the matter remains that, arguing that one is continuing something just because the other party did nothing about it pre-2013 is not a solid argument at all. The PN was voted out and people wanted change. In addition, people are far more environmentally aware than they were seven years ago, thus the situation has changed.

Over the years, PL ministers have referenced pre-2013 on many occasions and on many different topics, yet perhaps it is time to move forward. The PN made many mistakes yes, and was voted out. The PL has made some substantial mistakes of its own, and yet never really talks about them except in passing.

If the government is going to criticise pre-2013, perhaps the ministers should also take a look at the past seven years and specify what mistakes were made and admit them to the people, rather than take people for fools and try to blame Malta’s reputational damage on others for example.

The latest incident, that of Joe Cuschieri having travelled with Yorgen Fenech to Las Vegas, could potentially undo a lot of good done by the MFSA over the past few years.

The PL has its strong credentials, such as strengthening Malta’s economy, but failed when it came to protecting Malta’s reputation and has been riddled with scandal after scandal. Its environmental credentials are also questionable at best.

The Labour government can no longer take a lax attitude when it comes to Malta’s reputation and harsh decisions need to be taken to protect the country’s reputation. That means that, when wrongdoing is found, people should be removed from office outright and the situation should not be dragged out.