Robert Abela repeatedly refused to say whether he would be comfortable with  Joseph Muscat attending or addressing one of Labour’s rallies during the election campaign.

“Unlike the Opposition Leader, I do not throw away those who somehow disagree with my opinion,” he said, without mentioning his predecessor by name. 

He also refused to say whether Muscat will be invited to any of the rallies.

During a news conference on Tuesday morning, Abela dodged the question at least three times.

Instead he attempted to divert attention to the Nationalist Party, whose long-serving MP, Mario Galea announced he would not contest the election, saying party officials had made his life hell.

“This morning I saw Mario Galea’s comments in the news. He spoke about how the PN treated him, and it was shocking. I do not believe in this syle of leadership. I believe in politics of unity, not division.”

When journalists asked Abela again to answer the Joseph Muscat question, he highlighted how ironic it was to ask such a question, just hours after the Nationalist Party suffered an “exodus of established candidates.”

He said he will not play into the PN’s spin and that he prefers to continue speaking about Labour’s proposals for a better future.

Since stepping down as prime minister in 2020, Muscat has maintained a relatively low profile.

However that changed last month when his home was searched by police as part of an anti-corruption probe.

He has since filmed vlogs inside his home, hinting at a possible return to public life.

Throughout Abela's leadership, he has maintained a distance from Muscat and Labour’s election campaign is clearly centred around Abela as the key protagonist, with many of the erected billboards and banners reading simply “Robert Abela 2022”.