Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis and former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat have both damaged Malta's reputation and credibility and must be removed, Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech said.
In an interview on the party's radio on Sunday, Grech said: “Do we not understand the situation we are in? This is the justice minister who has a close relationship with Yorgen Fenech, alleged to be the conspirator of Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder. This relationship has once again shone an ugly light on Malta."
Zammit Lewis, the PN leader said, is not the "victim" but the "perpetrator".
Grech referred to how Zammit Lewis communicated with Fenech after addressing a press conference mocking attempts for justice over the businessman’s secret company 17 Black.
Earlier this week, the Opposition leader presented a motion of no confidence in Zammit Lewis, demanding his resignation of the minister, but the Speaker dismissed the PN's urgent call.
“If Prime Minister Robert Abela truly loves his country he needs to get rid of Zammit Lewis and Muscat, who both continue to damage the island’s reputation. For as long as they remain in politics, Malta will remain on the grey list and lose more credibility.”
Moody's rating
Grech also spoke on Moody's negative outlook for Malta saying this was more bad news for the country.
In its most recent update, the rating agency blamed the negative outlook on the government's debt burden, the Financial Action Task Force's greylisting and risks linked to the recovery of the tourism sector.
"We do not take any pride in this, but it just goes to show the impact greylisting has had on the country. We can no longer sit around and wait, we must work to move forward, otherwise our country will only go backwards," he said.
Grech promised that under a Nationalist government, the country would regain credibility and the party would take three months to put Malta back on the white list.
"We can do this because we have credibility, we work hard to ensure that from a bad reputation, the island can have an honourable one."
Power cuts
Referring to the recent spate of power cuts, Grech said it was shocking that a cancer patient had to spend a night in a hotel because of the situation.
“We have a government that does not plan, that has left us completely in the dark, not just metaphorically but also physically, especially at a time when we need electricity,” he said.