The leader of the Nationalist Party Bernard Grech has called for a national protest against the 'theft of Malta's quality of life'.

The protest will take place on Sunday, 2 October at 3 pm in Valletta, and Grech is urging everyone to attend.

He made the announcement whilst speaking during a political activity addressed at the Nationalist Party's Sub-Headquarters in Ta' Sannat, Gozo.

"We cannot allow the government to continue to roll over all of us. It is time to take action," he said, "to tell the government to stop stealing from our quality of life."

"The government is telling us that there isn't enough for you, but for its friends there is extra."

Grech said that the situation in the country is getting worse from one day to the next. "The cost of living is breaking everyone," he said, adding that the impact is being felt most by the elderly and the vulnerable.

Grech said that at a time when government's message is that the people will need to make sacrifices in the near future due to what Grech says is a "financial crisis the government is creating," Robert Abela is in New York, accompanied by "an enormous delegation, composed of people who, it is evident, he did not need to take with him, all paid for by the public."

Grech said that this waste of money should stop immediately, and that instead investment should be made where it is needed.

Grech also said that €50 million has been stolen from the public over the course of eight years through excess utility bill charges by the Automated Revenue Management Service Ltd's (ARMS).

This refers to a court judgement earlier this year that found that a billing method used by ARMS was resulting in the over-charging of consumers.

Recently, the PN announced that it would be gathering participants in order to file a class action lawsuit on this matter.

Grech also made reference to the alleged driving test bribery scandal and he condemned the people involved who made the roads more dangerous.

Here he was referring to a case where three Transport Malta officials were charged in court last month for allegedly taking bribes to pass students in their driving tests. In court, it was alleged that an unnamed minister was also involved. Grech condemned the Labour Party for not yet taking action against the unnamed minister.

Grech also emphasised the importance of salvaging the little bit of environment Malta has left. He directly referenced Gozo which is losing its beauty due to unrestrained development, he said.

Grech also mentioned how instead of millions of euros being spent on hospitals to help people, they were spent to pay the people "who have made secret dealings."

He said that money should also be invested in our hospital workers, which suffered a lot during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In reference to a recent survey conducted on young people, Grech expressed his concern that many young people want to leave Malta because they are not happy with the situation.

Grech further said that the survey showed that people have given up on the country or any prospect of having a future in Malta. Specifically due to the education system and the impunity.

PL statement

The Labour Party, in response to the news, said that "Bernard Grech wants to protest against the government that is providing unprecedented support in light of the unprecedented challenges around the world."
"This, at a time when all EU countries saw an explosion in energy prices, and only in Malta did these prices remain stable. It is clear that Grech does not know what is happening in the world."
"He is truly a desperate politician who does not know what he is going to do to gain a bit of relevance for the party he is supposedly leading."