All those who love Malta, even if they are not Nationalists, should join the PN to work to change the country for the better, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Saturday.

He was speaking at the opening of the party’s General Council.

Grech said that PN wants to change the country and is inviting all those who share the same vision to join it in doing so.

The PN has always raised Malta’s image abroad, both at an EU and at a global level, he said. On the other hand, Labour has always tarnished Malta’s reputation.

“We want Malta to regain its credibility and admiration. The Maltese do not deserve the bad name that the PL gave this country,” he said, with reference to the recent grey listing by the FATF.

“Our Malta is calling upon us to roll our sleeves up and restore it to the glory it deserves.”

Turning to the Covid-19 pandemic, Grech said the government has retained the old ‘mechanisms’ that last year led to the loss of the summer season and brought thousands of new cases.

The government’s arrogance is endangering thousands of jobs in the tourism sector, as well as the lives and lifestyles of the Maltese.

He criticised the decision to close all English language schools, saying that those who were abiding by the rules were punished alongside those who didn’t. He also spoke about Maltese citizens who are unable to travel to Malta as a result of the decision to make the vaccine certificate mandatory.

He then spoke about the PN’s efforts to draft new policies for Gozo. These policies, he said, are being drawn up by Gozitans, and this is the only way to ensure that the needs of the Gozitan population are seen to.

Grech said the health services on the island leave much to be desired and addressing these issues would be an absolute priority for a Nationalist government.

Gozo is also the PN’s front line in the fight for a better environment, he said, reiterating the pledge that a Nationalist government would buy Hondoq ir-Rummien from private owners in order to save it from development.

People are fed up of the abuses carried out by the Labour administration, Grech continued. They want a better alternative and the PN is responding to that call.

Grech said that, during the nine months he has served as party leader, the PN has set up 13 cluster groups that are working on ideas and proposals for various sectors.

The party has also found no less than 30 new candidates. It is also attracting people from all walks of life, including professionals, businesspersons and individuals who had never set foot inside the PN headquarters before.

Grech said that, from his analysis of meetings he held with hundreds of people, it is clear that the PN’s plan of action should focus on three levels: the party’s vision, the people who represent that vision, and communicating the message.

The vision includes finding a balance between different sectors, such as development and the environment, and an immigration policy that values life but ackowledges the country’s limitations.

He called on those people who have given up, or who choose to remain quiet to stand up and gain hope, “because the PN is there to support you.”

“We are willing and ready to adapt and change to welcome everyone among us, to build this vision together.”

“Our mission is to believe in you, to give hope to this country. We want to be the antithesis of those who shamed us abroad and dirtied Malta’s name.”