Muscat 'split the country' on national issues

Labour Leader Joseph Muscat split the country over issues like irregular immigration and work when there should be a nationwide effort, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said.

It was very strange that Malta faced problems with other countries soon after Dr Muscat divided the country over the issue of migration, Dr Gonzi told a political activity in Pietà.

He strongly rebutted an article that appeared in Labour's weekly newspaper KullĦadd saying that healthcare would no longer remain free. This story was another invention by the Labour Party's media similar to the one they used before the general election, Dr Gonzi said.

Speaking about the economy, Dr Gonzi referred to the labour force survey and another carried out by the Malta Business Bureau. Both surveys showed that the economy continued to grow and that companies were optimistic about the future despite the financial crisis, he said.

Dr Gonzi referred to a statement by Labour EP candidate Edward Scicluna in an interview on timesofmalta.com who said he believed the value of the Maltese lira was too high.

"So that is where Alfred Sant got his idea to devaluate the Maltese lira, which would have led to higher prices," Dr Gonzi said.

The Labour Party said Dr Gonzi had lost control of the country and was detached from reality. It pointed out that Dr Gonzi did not speak about irregular migration and failed to guarantee that the electricity tariffs would not rise after the June election.

After the activity, Dr Gonzi launched a fund raising marathon to collect funds for the Nationalist Party.