Neville Gafà returns to PL as customer care volunteer in Gozo

Former Joseph Muscat advisor Neville Gafà has returned to "customer care" work after saying he was approached by the Labour Party to start meeting voters in Gozo again.

“The party has called on me to give my contribution as I used to do. I have not had any role in the party or the government for five years, but when the party calls on you it’s hard to say no and I am honoured that the party has asked me to contribute,” Gafà said in a video message recorded in a car.

Asked if the Labour Party had approached Gafà for their role, or if he was acting on his own initiative, a PL spokesperson said the party had a "large pool of volunteers across Malta and Gozo in conveying its message to everyone and addressing people's needs.”

Contacted for comment, Gafà emphasised he was working voluntarily, adding he would soon begin doing the same in other parts of Malta.

“There have been cases that have been ignored for years. For example, issues like a request for a transfer for a civil worker, which should not have to drag on for so long”, he told Times of Malta.

In the video message, Gafà said the day of the general election was approaching and he remains committed to the party.

Gafà said he would be meeting voters from Gozo in his Xewkija office as he had done in the past. 

He said that while the PL had convinced Gozitan voters to choose the PL in 2013 and subsequent elections, Gozo had given the party a “hard lesson” in last year's European Parliament elections.

He said the party and the government understand the “lesson and take it with humility. Come and meet us, tell us what you need, what you expect, and if we have disappointed you.”

“For all those who have not seen justice and all those who have long waited for what should be theirs, I guarantee that you will be given what is rightfully yours,” Gafà said, speaking over techno music playing from his car stereo.

During Joseph Muscat’s tenure, Neville Gafà headed the Office of the Prime Minister’s “customer care” efforts, developing a reputation as an effective manager who ensured people’s complaints about government services were addressed.

When Robert Abela took the keys to Castille, however, Gafà was given no role in the new prime minister’s office or any other job in the government or Labour Party.

In 2020, Gafà supported Abela in his bid for PL leader, but their relationship quickly soured when Gafà was left without a job. Labour sources, however, said the relationship between Abela and Gafà had significantly improved over the last few months.

Others added that having a figure in Gozo from the party was important, even if three government ministers were elected from the island.

“It’s funny, but in some cases, Gozitans would rather speak to someone who is Maltese (i.e. not from Gozo)," one source said.