With the European Parliament election two months away, the main political parties have set their sights on the south as controversy rages over the gas power station.
The pitch aimed at the southern electorate was evident yesterday in the speeches delivered by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Opposition leader Simon Busuttil.
While Dr Muscat said people in the south would be better off with the gas-fired power station because they could breathe cleaner air, Dr Busuttil accused the government of betraying its electorate.
But both leaders played the underdog card. Dr Muscat said no party in government had ever won a majority of votes in an MEP election and urged supporters to make this happen.
Dr Busuttil said the PN had a mountain to climb after last year’s electoral defeat but for the first time spoke about the importance of winning.
In May, when people choose their MEPs, Dr Muscat will want to defend the impressive gains Labour made in last year’s general election, especially in the south where it captured 16 out of the 20 parliamentary seats up for grabs.
However, Dr Busuttil will seek to dent that record and yesterday insisted the Nationalist Party had to be the voice of the south. Dr Busuttil said nowhere in the electoral programme did the Labour Party mention that a gas storage ship the size of three football grounds would be permanently moored inside Marsaxlokk Bay.
“Residents in the south, who in their majority voted Labour, were used and they cannot speak out because their party has betrayed them. The PN has to give them a voice, stand up and fight for them.”
Urging the government to consider anchoring the ship outside the port, he insisted the PN would “object strongly, in every way” to the proposed development.
But Dr Muscat insisted a floating gas storage unit inside the port was the safest option. He claimed that an offshore location would result in closing off a long corridor for marine traffic to protect the pipeline.
“If the PN are genuinely concerned about the gas storage, why had the previous administration given permission for an LPG [liquefied petroleum gas – which is used in households] bottling facility in Bengħajsa? My belief is that neither of them pose a safety hazard.”
The project is critical for the government to fulfil a pledge to lower electricity tariffs by 25 per cent by the end of the month for families and the same amount next year for businesses.
Additional reporting Keith Micallef