The Nationalist Party's two main dissenters on the nomination of George Abela for President of the Republic cited "political" reasons for their objections.
Both MEP Simon Busuttil and backbencher Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando argued that the Nationalist Party could be playing into opposition's hands by nominating a former Labour deputy leader head of state, sources within the PN parliamentary group told The Sunday Times.
No vote was taken on Dr Abela's nomination when the PN parliamentary group met on Monday, contrary to the Labour Party, where two high-profile MPs voted against.
The overall feeling within the PN group was positive, though many, including Cabinet members, were upset that news of Dr Abela's nomination had been broken by the media before they were informed.
Several MPs said it was "wise" of Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to appoint a former top Labour official, especially when one considered the 60-year-old lawyer's track record in vital historic decisions, like EU membership.
Dr Gonzi underlined that his choice was also based on the slim majority that the PN obtained in the last general election, according to the same sources.
But some members raised concerns over whether the choice of Dr Abela would pave the way for the rehabilitation of the Labour Party. Dr Busuttil also asked why the Prime Minister had ignored potentially suitable names from the Nationalist ranks for the post, while some MPs called on their colleagues to reflect on the potential impact of such an appointment on core Nationalist supporters.
When contacted, Dr Busuttil declined to comment on the discussion which unfolded during the PN's meeting, saying that anybody who did so would be out of order.
Dr Busuttil said the group reached one conclusion and this had been publicly expressed by the Prime Minister.
"If internal discussions in a parliamentary group had to be made public - outlining who said what and why, decisions of this importance would not be debated thoroughly before being taken because members would be reluctant to express themselves freely for fear of ending up in the media."
Nevertheless, Dr Busuttil said there is no question that he followed the collective decision of the PN parliamentary group, and he congratulated Dr Abela on his nomination. Dr Pullicino Orlando told The Sunday Times that his arguments against the nomination of Dr Abela as president were of a purely political nature.
"I have nothing personal against Dr Abela and I have no doubt he will make an excellent president. At no point did anybody in the parliamentary group who opposed the nomination make arguments of a personal nature."
Sources expressed optimism that the PN parliamentary group would unanimously vote in favour of Dr Abela's appointment.
A number of backbenchers were expecting the Prime Minister to follow the decades-old tradition that has accompanied every Presidential nomination after Sir Anthony Mamo and nominate one of their own. Several expected Dr Gonzi to put forward Louis Galea's name for President.
Within the Labour Party it was former leader Alfred Sant and ex-deputy leader George Vella who spoke out against Dr Abela's nomination. The reasons were more of a personal nature than political.
The vote, however, was held in secret at the end of a heated discussion during which Dr Sant and Dr Vella were heard voicing disagreement, sources said.
Twenty-six Labour MPs voted in favour of Dr Abela's nomination, while two were against, and there was one abstention. Both Dr Sant and Dr Vella refused to comment when contacted by The Times last week.
During Labour's leadership contest last year, Dr Sant and Dr Vella had publicly denied Dr Abela's version of EU-related events between 1996 and 1998.
Dr Abela had said there had been internal party discussions to try and find a compromise solution with the Nationalist opposition on the best way forward with regard to relations with the EU.
Dr Sant and Dr Vella together with Dr Abela formed the party's winning triumvirate in 1996 before the turnaround in fortunes during the short-lived Labour administration, which was voted out in a premature election two years later.