Prime Minister Robert Abela is celebrating five years of corruption, scandals and U-turns, the leader of the Nationalist Party, Bernard Grech, said on Sunday.

Reacting to Labour Party celebrations of the fifth anniversary since Abela succeeded Joseph Muscat as party leader and prime minister, Grech criticised Abela for continuing on the “road map of corruption.” 

Speaking in Naxxar, Grech said the Labour government had been mired in controversy since its election in 2013, and nothing had changed under Abela.

He slammed the government for being solely interested in its own interests, pointing out that former minister Justyne Caruana, who was forced to resign twice, was now earning €78,000 a year through government contracts.

Moving forward, Grech pledged to continue the fight against corruption and its quest to reveal the truth about 17 Black, the secret Panama-registered company allegedly set up to funnel backhanders from the power station contract. 

He commended the courts' efforts to expose corruption, stating that this was precisely why Abela was attacking the judiciary.

Grech also accused the government of doing everything in its power to prevent the opposition from asking certain questions during the Public Accounts Committee probe into the Electrogas power station project.

Supporters listen to Bernard Grech in Naxxar.