The government lost a golden opportunity on Monday to bring this nation up to speed on what is happening with the new power station project.

Valid questions raised by the Opposition, independent media and even some Labour backbenchers were left unanswered as the government opted instead to turn the parliamentary debate into a mud-slinging exercise.

The nation deserves to know when works on the new power station are going to start and when they are going to finish.

The Labour Party had claimed that the reduction in tariffs implemented soon after the general election would be financed from the deposit to be paid to the government by the selected consortium. The nation deserves to know why, as yet, not a single cent has been paid of the €30 million deposit.

The Labour Party had claimed that the reduction in electricity tariffs for business would come into effect in March 2015 because, by then, the new power station would be complete. The nation, therefore, deserves to know how the government intends to finance the estimated consequential €77 million shortfall in Enemalta’s revenue caused by the delay in the project.

The nation deserves to know what caused the project to stall.

The nation deserves to know the details of the contracts signed by the government with Electrogas Malta and Shanghai Electric, deals that will be financed by taxpayers’ money. At the very least, we need to know who we are dealing with and what their worth is. To date, nothing has been published or tabled in Parliament.

The nation needs assurances that our country is not going to end up buying more electricity than it needs.

The nation deserves to know why the drop in the international price of oil has not resulted in an equivalent drop in the price of petrol and diesel. Is the government going to fund the reduction in electricity tariffs by inflating the price of petrol and diesel?

The nation needs to know whether environmental, safety and maritime impact studies related to the project, which were short-changed in the purported interest of speed, will now be effected given that time no longer seems to be of the essence.

The Opposition tabled a motion precisely to seek answers to these questions. Instead of saying the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, the government engaged in a series of lies, half lies and despicable personal attacks.

If the facts do not add up, it is usually because the truth was left out of the equation

Perhaps the government thinks that attack is the best form of defence. That could be the case if you have a strong attack.

But in this case, the government’s attack was as weak as the pre-electoral promise it made to build a power station within 24 months of being elected.

It was as weak as the Labour Party’s promise to stop using heavy fuel oil to fire up the BWSC plant. It was as weak as the Labour Party’s promise to speed up works on the interconnector project. It was as weak as the Labour Party’s project to lead a transparent and accountable government.

If the facts do not add up, it is usually because the truth was left out of the equation.

One has to keep in mind that this project was not a run-of-the-mill works project. Joseph Muscat repeatedly tied his political future to the successful and timely implementation of this project.

The power station project was the battle cry in the last electoral campaign and is central to this government’s promise to cut energy tariffs. We are not questioning that mandate. We are insisting the government carries it out fully. We expect the government to deliver on its road map and not take detours at every corner.

As from March 15, according to Labour’s road map, Malta should have a new power station. The BWSC plant should be using gas. Is there anyone left in Malta who believes these goals will be achieved? The answer is clearly no.

Even Labour members of Parliament are losing faith. Marlene Farrugia is asking her colleagues to deliver on their promises, to stop selling perceptions. Her speech in Parliament should have served as a wake-up call for Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi. However, he chose to ignore her request to be concrete in his replies.

Where does this leave us? It leaves the government hiding behind buzzwords and empty rhetoric as it struggles to salvage its star project. From being a campaign winner, this project is fast becoming an albatross around this government’s neck.

The Opposition is going to continue pressing for replies. The government will undoubtedly try and come up with more diversionary tactics. It will continue to try and alienate people as it did on Monday.

There is a limit of how long and far this strategy will last.

The government should keep in mind the old adage: you can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time but you cannot fool all the people all the time.

Mario de Marco is deputy leader of the Nationalist Party.