Alex Borg vows to win, not just 'narrow the margin'

Alex Borg said the Nationalist Party is going into the next general election with the sole aim of winning, dismissing the idea of merely reducing the Labour Party’s majority.

Speaking during an interview on NET TV on Sunday morning, the Gozitan leader insisted that the PN has successfully "got its house in order" by publishing its long-overdue accounts and maximising the value of its assets without selling off party clubs.

He also said there was newfound enthusiasm for the party among the people.

"But in this new year, we now need to up our game; we cannot go into a general election with the aim of narrowing the margin. This is a glorious party, and we shouldn't go into an election to lose," he told supporters.

"We must now be, not only a strong opposition, but an alternative government, a government in waiting. This will be a crucial year during which the prime minister might call an election, and, if that happens, it must find us prepared — not to narrow the margin, but to win."

Borg said he had delivered on every promise made in his leadership campaign, would launch the party's new political podcast 'in the coming days' and is working on a national, non-partisan convention slated for next month.

"We must now ensure our policies are relevant for the modern world," he said.

"An election is not won merely through contact with people, but by showing them that we are a safe pair of hands and that we are capable enough of taking the country where it needs to go, to meet the needs of all people."

Assets and campaign spending

Borg also challenged Prime Minister Robert Abela to publish his leadership campaign spending, saying that while he published his own spending a mere few months after the election, Abela is yet to publish his, six years after he was elected.

He also slammed Abela for 'ordering' his MPs not to publish their assets, noting that PN MPs already declare all assets annually and will continue to do so if the PN is in government.

It was Borg's first Sunday political event this year. Photo: PN

"No wonder he defends Minister Roderick Galdes on the properties he owns. There are serious doubts about the assets and the source of wealth of ministers and the prime minister himself. It's another blow to transparency and good governance," he said.

"But we will be transparent. Just imagine what we could do with the wasted millions on Vitals and Steward. As prime minister, I would make sure we declare all our assets to be transparent with the people and to show people that we have their best interests at heart."

Housing and the economy

Borg also proposed new "rent-to-own" schemes and incentives for buying vacant properties in village cores to tackle housing affordability. He also vowed to bolster equity-sharing schemes.

But the real vision must be an economic one, he said. Specifically, the country must blend its education system with the economic niches it plans to strengthen and create.

"Imagine what we could do in e-sports, 3D printing, aviation, med-tech, fin-tech and the blue economy if we integrated them with the national education system," he said.

"We can be European frontrunners in these markets."

Borg was interviewed by NET journalist Francesco Catania. Photo: PN

Instead, he said, the government had allowed the population to rise dramatically, leaving people stuck in traffic and in long queues in hospitals. He said he spoke to one patient who reported being left to wait for more than 12 hours to get a bed at the emergency department.

He did acknowledge, however, that the economy was resilient under Labour, despite several global crises, and said the recent budgets addressed some of the people's needs. But the government lacks a long-term plan, he said.

Furthermore, the government had underinvested in Gozo's connectivity for 13 years, something he said would change under a PN administration.

"What better way for Gozitans to be given priority if not by having a Gozitan prime minister?" he said as supporters cheered.

He also called on the government to collaborate with his party on a mass transport project that he said would continue after Labour was no longer in power.

Meanwhile, Abela continues to waste taxpayers' money, he said, pointing to the Ta' Qali gravel saga as proof.

"If that is not a waste of money, I don't know what is."

The Opposition leader said the crowd-funding initiatives he had launched were aimed at raising money from the many, not the few, while giving people the opportunity to invest in the future of their country and to be part of the party's vision.