Robert Abela avoided any mention of his surprise cabinet reshuffle while addressing Labour supporters on Sunday, and instead slammed the Opposition's shadow cabinet.
Addressing his first Labour Party political activity of the year in Gżira, Abela also praised the work of his predecessor and "friend (sieħbi)" Joseph Muscat.
The PL event was held hours after Abela announced his changes to cabinet, which saw Aaron Farrugia not only lose his transport portfolio, but also being completely kicked out of cabinet.
Instead of addressing the elephant in the room, Abela began his speech by expressing gratitude to his colleagues, focused specifically on Chris Fearne, who will be Malta’s nominee as EU commissioner.
“We worked together and took many difficult decisions which we thought we would never face,” Abela said, referring to the COVID pandemic.
“We protected the health, the economy, and the people... I want to thank you from my heart, Chris.”
"My friend, Joseph Muscat" Robert Abela praised the work of his precedessor during a political speech on Sunday. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli'My friend, Joseph Muscat'
At the beginning of his address, Abela also praised Muscat, whom he called "sieħbi".
“Four years ago, we started this program to build on what the party began back in 2013, under the leadership of my friend Joseph Muscat,” Abela said.
The mention of Muscat was met with cheers and whistles from the crowd.
This year, all eyes will be on the ongoing magisterial inquiry into the “fraudulent” hospital deal and whether it will recommend criminal action against Joseph Muscat.
The inquiry is looking into whether a consultancy contract that netted Muscat €60,000 could have been used as a vehicle to disguise payments from the hospitals’ deal. Muscat denies all wrongdoing.
'Our country has a good year ahead'
Most of Abela’s speech was dominated by the government’s achievements during his four years as Prime Minister.
He referred to PL’s socialist roots, an increase in children’s benefits, wages and allowances. He said that while there was always room for improvement, he will never speak negatively about Malta.
“Every day I ask myself: how can I be negative about our country when I meet so many people who are full of love, dedication, and aspiration for Malta? How can I be negative and crush the aspirations of these people,” he asked.
Apart from the achievements, Abela also mentioned several upcoming priorities, such as the regeneration of the Grand Harbour, reforms in the construction sector, environmentally conscious planning and initiatives to combat the increasing cost of living.
On the subject of energy prices, Abela said that while the rest of Europe suffered from increasing energy and gas prices, the government continued to prioritise the interests of the people.
“We will never burden people with the price of inflation, and we will continue to provide sustainable prices for energy and gas,” he said.
‘Establishment’ elected Grech leader as a ‘stop-gap’ solution
Abela also criticised the Nationalist Party, warning against “the establishment” that he said was strengthening itself by weakening the people.
“They do not want power to provide for the good of the people, but they want power for themselves,” Abela said.
“We see how much the PN continues to strategically damage the country’s interests,” he said.
“They do everything to try to scare us from making the right decisions for our country, but we will not let them. They try to destroy the spirit of Malta, but we will fight for the good of our country.”
He said the "establishment" had elected Bernard Grech leader of the party as a 'stop-gap' solution.
Abela added that "the establishment" tried to downplay the importance of politics and public life and to stop the institutions from making decisions in favour of the country.
"While the courts have an important role in democracy, Parliament is the highest institution in the country as it reflects the sovereignty of the people's wishes," he said.
“The Opposition knows this principle, but it goes out of the window when they are in Opposition,” he said.