Prime Minister Robert Abela yesterday confirmed that the Maltese public will have to pay even more out of their own pockets for grass to grow again in the picnic area at Ta' Qali, after this public space enjoyed by families was covered with gravel - a project that has already cost Maltese and Gozitan taxpayers €300,000, the Nationalist Party said Monday.

After months of assuring the public that the project would succeed, with promise after promise, month after month, that the situation would improve, Abela yesterday admitted that the project has failed. He said that people should not expect to see grass growing in Ta' Qali - neither in January nor in February - not least because concerts will begin there from March. He also announced that the Government has now appointed a Maltese grass expert to ensure that the grass grows again.

This contrasts starkly with statements made by Jason Micallef - Abela's own Special Delegate, responsible for implementing the Labour electoral manifesto - who had assured the public that the grass would grow back with the very first rainfall, the PN said.

On Super One, Abela did not say how much additional public money will now be spent on expert advice, after having to engage yet another consultant to resolve this mess. Nor did he comment on the facts that have emerged in recent weeks confirming that the gravel covering was awarded through a direct order to a contractor very close to the Prime Minister, without any public call for tenders, without any environmental impact studies, and without the necessary environmental permits being obtained.

Meanwhile, as Abela himself confirmed this failure and cast aside Jason Micallef, the Chairman of the Ta' Qali National Park was quick to retaliate with further attacks.

Micallef launched an attack on Times of Malta, which had interviewed him on site, and in a social media post specifically targeted Times editor Herman Grech. In a separate post, he again attacked podcaster Trudy Kerr, whom he had already aggressively targeted when this saga first erupted, calling her a "failed podcaster".

These attacks follow the personal attack in mid-December on a journalist from Newsbook Malta and on her brother, the Spokesperson for the President of Malta. Those attacks drew condemnation from the Institute of Maltese Journalists (IĠM), which described them as attempts at bullying and intimidation of journalists simply for doing their job.

At no point did Robert Abela yesterday apologise for Jason Micallef's behaviour or condemn these attacks. In doing so, he endorsed Labour's style of attacking anyone who disagrees with it, including the media that asks questions to hold it accountable for its actions, the PN said.