Former president George Vella was walking into a Labour Party executive meeting after the 1992 general election defeat. He was late.

Before he could sit down, he heard then party leader Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici announce that he – George Vella, who was then an MP – would succeed him as leader. This was news to him.

Vella revealed this in the new book Karmenu. Il-Verità, Xejn Anqas Mill-Verità (The Truth, Nothing But the Truth) in which 24 individuals who knew and worked with Mifsud Bonnici shared memories, experiences and reflections. The former prime minister passed away in 2022, aged 89.

Edited by Joe Borg and published by SKS Publishers, the book includes chapters by Mifsud Bonnici’s cousin and former president Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, President Myriam Spiteri Debono, Evarist Bartolo, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, George Abela, Alfred Sant, Toni Abela, and Joe Mifsud, among others.

George Vella and Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici during a demonstration. Photo: Labour Party

In part of his contribution, Vella spoke about the 1992 Labour meeting held at the Maċina.

“I was walking in and I heard him say: ‘I decided that the best person to lead the Labour Party is George Vella.’ I said: ‘What is he on about?’, I was still standing up and walking in. I said: ‘Sorry, sorry, sorry.’ I apologised then I said: ‘What are you saying?’”

Vella revealed how Mifsud Bonnici had never consulted him. However, he later told him he had decided he would be the best fit for leader.

He reached his conclusion after he made a list of potential candidates and allocated points depending on family ties, integrity, experience, language proficiency, and other factors – and Vella scored the highest.

Vella felt that now that the announcement had been made – and was picked up by the media – he had to, at least, consider it.

It was a difficult time, and he spent a week of sleepless nights – consulting many over the matter.

He eventually decided this was not for him. But Mifsud Bonnici did not want to accept it and also announced his name during a meeting in Gżira.

Vella wrote a letter to Mifsud Bonnici explaining he was not consulted and did not want the role and was ready to publish the letter. He eventually accepted the situation and Alfred Sant went on to become leader following an election with Lino Spiteri.

Vella said this episode was an example of Mifsud Bonnici’s stubborn nature – once he set his mind on something, he would not turn back.

'Karmenu. Il-Verità, Xejn Anqas Mill-Verità' – in which 24 individuals who knew and worked with Mifsud Bonnici shared memories, experiences and reflections.

‘He called me an idiot’

Another example of this stubborn trait was EU accession – something Mifsud Bonnici fought against until the end. Vella said he was very close with him until the EU accession issue.

After the 2003 referendum and general election defeats, the PL accepted the results and promised the people that a Labour government would lead better and negotiate better. But Mifsud Bonnici persisted in his ‘exit Europe’ strategy.

“I remember it was the only time I heard Karmenu say the word ‘idiot’. He told me: ‘You are such an idiot. The day will come when people will assault you in the streets because of this policy’,” he wrote.

The time that Karmenu spent as prime minister were not happy times

After that, they were no long close. Mifsud Bonnici stopped dropping by at his house for long chats as he used to.

As Vella reflected on his former party leader, he described him as a good, intelligent man but was “not a political animal”.

“While having the right principles is crucial, you must have the political nous, which I feel Karmenu did not have. If Karmenu thought: ‘I want to take this path’, he would take that path. If he felt he was right, he felt this gave him the right of way. The political world does not work that way.”

Tal-Barrani – a mistake

And one other example was the Tal-Barrani clashes on November 30, 1986, one of the darkest chapters in Malta’s political history. It started when the Nationalist Party decided to hold a mass meeting in Żejtun, a Labour Party stronghold. A permit was initially granted but then withdrawn.

The Nationalist Party insisted it would go ahead in the name of freedom of expression, sparking violent clashes between the two parties.

The PN meeting at Tal-Barrani. Photo: Private Collection

Vella admitted that he was one of the people who advised Mifsud Bonnici not to allow the meeting.

“I remember telling him: ‘Don’t give the permit for the meeting’. I reasoned that way to avoid trouble.... Today I understand that it was a mistake.

“Karmenu could have said: ‘Okay, I will give the permit. But if Nationalists are coming to Żejtun, stay indoors and let them be.’ But the incitement went on. Unfortunately, we hear words like: ‘They will not set foot into Żejtun.’ It was a senseless decision.”

A generous man

Vella, like other contributors in the book, spoke about how Mifsud Bonnici was very loved by the people. He was a reserved person who fought for what he believed in.

He was not in it for the money – but for the love of his country. Vella shared how he was once told that the government owed him some Lm30,000 (€70,000) for legal work he had carried out. But he did not want the money and asked that it be transferred into the consolidated fund. He was also very generous with people in need.

Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici Photo: Labour Party

Vella reflected on how Mifsud Bonnici entered politics during a dark political climate in 1984. He spoke how he believed his predecessor, Dom Mintoff, had appointed him party leader as a strategy move to block others in the party from taking the role.

“The time that Karmenu spent as prime minister were not happy times, they were not easy. In those circumstances, I believe that what Karmenu did, he did because he was convinced it was for the best: not for his personal interest or for the party, but in the interest of the country. History will be the judge of him.”