Nationalist MP Franco Debono yesterday called Lawrence Gonzi “Malta’s Hitler”, justifying his outlandish claim by saying that the Prime Minister caused harm to him and the country.

Dr Debono later edited his blog post to remove the claim from the title, even though he reiterated the remarks in the comments board.

Asked by readers how he could make the comparison, Dr Debono said: “I have tasted his methods. Maybe you are lucky, since you support him he doesn’t unleash his dogs to exterminate you and all you have built in a lifetime.”

Asked to react to Dr Debono’s statement, a spokesman to the Prime Minister said: “The Prime Minister has already stated that all Members of Parliament must shoulder responsibility for their words and actions.

“The Prime Minister is proud of what we have achieved together as a nation during the past five years and will ultimately submit his track record to the general public,” the Prime Minister’s spokesman added.

According to case law, comparing someone to the Austrian-born German dictator Adolf Hitler, responsible for Nazism and the Holocaust, is libellous.

In 2003, the editor of PN newspaper In-Nazzjon was fined for publishing a cartoon depicting then Labour leader Alfred Sant as Hitler.

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