The Nationalist Party has accused Prime Minister Robert Abela of attempting to shift responsibility for recent nationwide electricity outages onto Enemalta instead of accepting political accountability for government's handling of the country's energy infrastructure.
In a statement, the Opposition said the Prime Minister was seeking to blame the state-owned energy company following several days of power cuts that disrupted households and businesses across Malta.
The PN said that, as Enemalta is wholly government-owned, responsibility for its performance ultimately rests with Energy Minister Miriam Dalli and Prime Minister Abela.
The Opposition questioned who was responsible for ensuring that Enemalta had the necessary investment, workforce and infrastructure to cope with rising electricity demand, arguing that these decisions fell within the Government's remit.
The PN maintained that it was government's responsibility to prepare the electricity network for population growth, increasing energy consumption and periods of extreme summer temperatures.
It also said that infrastructure investment should have been carried out before the current difficulties emerged, rather than in response to the crisis.
The PN said that the Prime Minister could not distance himself from responsibility when problems arose, noting that the Labour administration has been in government for 13 years.
The Opposition also defended Enemalta employees, saying they should not bear the political consequences of what it described as failures in planning.
It praised workers for their efforts to restore electricity supplies, highlighting the long hours, difficult conditions and high temperatures under which they have been working.
The PN called on government to provide appropriate compensation to Enemalta employees working under what it described as extraordinary circumstances, arguing that the workers deserved recognition for their service rather than criticism.
The Opposition said it would continue to press for political accountability, greater investment in the country's electricity infrastructure and a long-term strategy to ensure Malta's power network can meet current and future demand.
It also reiterated its support for Enemalta workers, describing them as part of the solution rather than the cause of the recent disruptions.
In reply, the Labour Party categorically rejected the Nationalist Party's allegations that Prime Minister Robert Abela blamed Enemalta workers for the recent power outages.
Over the past few days, the Prime Minister has publicly thanked Enemalta employees on more than one occasion for their extraordinary work under extremely challenging conditions.
When he stated that Enemalta needed to accelerate its work, he was clearly referring to the company's investment programme and the infrastructure projects aimed at strengthening the national electricity grid, not to the workers who were on the ground restoring power, the PL said.
The Nationalist Party knows this, yet it has deliberately chosen to twist the Prime Minister's words in order to construct a false narrative.
This once again demonstrates where the Nationalist Party's priorities lie.
At a time when Maltese and Gozitan families expect seriousness and a sense of responsibility, the PN has chosen political gain over the national interest.
A Labour Government will continue to support Enemalta's employees through concrete action, while continuing to invest in strengthening Malta's electricity infrastructure and ensuring an increasingly reliable service for Maltese and Gozitan families and businesses, the PL said.