Bernard Grech lashed out at the government for remaining indifferent to the plight of the Ukrainian people, despite the fact the country is under siege from neighbouring Russia.
“We have to feel the pain that other Europeans are suffering. We have an obligation to send an international signal that the Maltese are supporting a country in distress,” the Nationalist Party leader said.
Grech was addressing supporters in Xagħra, Gozo on Saturday night, as part of the political speeches in the run-up to the March 26 general election.
The opposition leader said the government has failed to suspend Russian applications for Malta’s IIP scheme, despite his appeal to do so on Friday.
He said it was shameful that the police were instructed to remove protest symbols placed in front of the Russian embassy in Kappara on Friday, the same way the government had repeatedly instructed its cleaners to wipe out tributes paid to Daphne Caruana Galizia in Valletta.
Grech made several references to the party's electoral manifesto launched on Thursday, especially the initiatives towards Gozo. He described the manifesto as the most ambitious programme presented by a political party in Malta.
“I won’t use terms like ‘being the best in the world’... but I believe in credibility.”, he said, paying tribute to outgoing Claudio Grech who he pledged would remain an integral member in the PN.
He urged supporters to not let anyone erase from their memories the past built by Nationalist governments or the ugliness witnessed under Labour regimes.
'Ghosts of the past'
Robert Abela opted for an early election because he is scared the "ghosts of the past" could come back to haunt him, the PN leader said.
Unlike the PL government, the PN does have any deals cooked up behind people’s backs and does not have any cosy relationships with criminals.
People are realising they’re being taken for a ride when they are being promised government jobs after the election.
"If they wanted to give you a job, they’d have done it until now," he charged.
He said the PN had a programme to help Gozo’s specific issues, but insisted they would not be carried out at the expense of the precious environment.
He pledged a new merchandise ferry from the Grand Harbour to Gozo, while the “junk” fourth ferry introduced by the government would be replaced.
Grech said his party was in favour of a permanent link between the two islands. But this needs to come with proper studies, including on the geology as well as a social impact, and such studies will be made public. Likewise, the PN will consider an air link to Gozo.
A PN government will embark on a concerted drive to encourage home working and thus reduce Gozitans' need to commute daily to Malta.
Photo: Matthew Mirabelli