Sant in bid to soften public perception of his leadership

Alfred Sant yesterday sought to soften his public image, saying most of the plans being put together by the Labour Party in anticipation of the next general election were being coordinated by Labour spokesmen and prospective candidates.

It was a clear bid by him to counter the criticism often levelled at him by the Nationalist Party media that he ran the MLP without consulting anyone.

He said the party's environmental policy was led by environment spokesman Joe Mizzi and coordinated by Philip Borg, party vice-president.

Others he mentioned by name as working on the MLP electoral programme included John Attard Montalto, Karmenu Vella, Noel Farrugia, Charles Buhagiar and prospective candidates Alfred Mifsud, Joe Sammut and former party president Mario Vella.

He said that during visits to New York and St Petersburg, he was accompanied by Leo Brincat and Karmenu Vella and the same pattern would be followed in the forthcoming visit to China.

The MLP was also drawing up a plan to fight drug trafficking when returned to office. This was being put together by Anglu Farrugia, Gavin Gulia and himself.

"This plan has taken on added importance and urgency after drug traffickers felt powerful enough to bribe members of the judiciary," he said.

Speaking at the annual general meeting of the MLP club in Rabat, Dr Sant repeatedly called on the party to work as a team, pointing out that disagreements often broke out even between family members.

Later on in his speech Dr Sant aimed his guns at the prime minister, the GRTU, Association of General Retailers and Traders, and the company involved in television productions, Where's Everybody? producers of Xarabank.

The Labour leader once again labelled Dr Fenech Adami "Verheugen's prisoner" saying the prime minister was merely doing what Brussels ordered him to do.

The GRTU had joined the brain washing exercise initiated by the government and supported by the Malta-EU Information Centre, saying there was no road ahead for Malta other than membership of the EU.

"While the GRTU is claiming it is taking a neutral stand on EU membership, it is saying that with or without membership, Malta would have to adapt the rules and regulations of the EU," he said.

Dr Sant said the MLP would provide Malta with an alternative to the government's insistence that the only road ahead was EU membership.

The two main blocs in the European Convention on the future of Europe, the Socialists and the Conservatives, were arguing that there should be an arrangement with those countries that wanted a close relationship with the EU short of membership.

"This type of arrangement would fit Malta's particular needs and it would not be a question of either being in or out of the EU. They are saying that such a partnership is feasible."

Such partnership would be possible with countries outside the EU such as the US and Russia. The partnership concept could be extended to include all the Maltese working together for a better Malta.

Those forces in favour of EU membership had turned their guns on the Broadcasting Authority, he said, because the BA had taken steps to redress the balance in the proliferation of information about the EU.

Gunther Verheugen, the EU commissioner for Enlargement had been a guest on Xarabank. Such things could only happen in Malta. Had Verheugen ever gone on the Jerry Springer show? Dr Sant joked.

Reporters were asked to leave the meeting when Dr Sant finished his speech and was about to take questions from the floor.