Robert Abela likes to speak about the "establishment" but is unable to tell journalists who that is because the establishment is himself, Bernard Grech told supporters on Sunday,
"The establishment is he who has been in government for 11 years and remains gripped to power, he who used to earn €17,000 monthly for a part-time job with the government, he who uses power to regularise law infringements in some villa he snatched from a couple, he who controls what is meant to be a public broadcaster," Grech said.
"The establishment is he who competed with a mother who simply wanted to know the truth about her son's death, he who covers up information and controls the police and the AG. The establishment is those who were found responsible for creating a culture of impunity that led to the assassination of a journalist."
Grech's address begins at 08:06.
Grech was taking a dig at Robert Abela's repeated accusations this week that the "establishment" had taken over the courts and was trying to smear Joseph Muscat and other Labour politicians with crimes they did not commit, to damage the party on the eve of two elections.
The PN leader was speaking at a party rally in Valletta, as the campaigns for next month's elections are now in full swing.
'The incarnation of the establishment'
He said not only was the PN not the establishment, but it was the PN who pushed the Labour establishment to give back to the people three public hospitals that it had given to Vitals and Steward Healthcare.
"The establishment is he who has access to the conclusions of the magisterial inquiry on the biggest fraud in history, even though it has not been published yet, and is using it to make political manoeuvres that serve only himself," Grech said, not once mentioning Abela's name while making it clear he was referring to him.
"He is the head of the establishment, the personification of it. He is the incarnation of the establishment."
Grech addressed a PN political event in Valletta. Photo: PNIf people in government truly did nothing wrong and have nothing to fear, why is Abela controlling and hiding the truth, Grech asked.
Abela knows who did what and is now trying to obscure the truth and mislead people about the timing of the inquiry, he added.
"And now he's attacking those who seem to have found the truth and will expose it," Grech said.
"That's why the magisterial inquiry should be published immediately. People have the right to know the truth now and we need to make sure the police and the AG are following the magistrate's recommendations."
The truth might take time to come out, but it will come out eventually, he said, and only the truth can free the people from the establishment and bring about the much-needed justice.