Dom Mintoff personally met Eddie Fenech Adami in 1997 and told him he was prepared to bring down Alfred Sant’s government, the former Nationalist prime minister’s autobiography will reveal.
Mr Mintoff stuck to his words, leading to the demise of his own government in September 1998, after just 22 months in office.
The details will emerge from Dr Fenech Adami’s long-awaited autobiography to be launched on Friday, excerpts of which are reproduced in today’s edition of The Sunday Times of Malta.
Though Dr Sant implied at the time that Mr Mintoff had been having meetings with the PN’s deputy leader Guido de Marco behind his back, it was not known that the ex-Labour premier had demanded Dr Fenech Adami come to see him at his home in Delimara.
“He wanted us to take a common stand with him on the EU, in writing, to get negotiations going, and said we must stick to it come what may,” Dr Fenech Adami says in the book.
“Displaying obvious reluctance, I said, ‘What would Sant have to say about such a thing?’
“His response was typically combative; he asked me if I was afraid to bring down the government. When I told him I would do it at any moment if I had the numbers, he said he had no problem doing it himself; he had done it before and would do it again.
“I was astonished, but did not wish to get into government through any agreement with Mintoff. I wanted to force a change of policy on our own terms. Time would prove, however, that he was not bluffing.”
I was astonished
Dr Fenech Adami says Dr Sant and Mr Mintoff never liked each other and the rift was becoming more pronounced after Labour won the 1996 general election.
Matters came to a head when Labour presented the Budget for 1998. Mr Mintoff voted against his party on a procedural motion to regulate the Budget debate and tore into the government after it refused to allow him to speak in Parliament.
It was ultimately a proposal to redevelop the Cottonera Waterfront that led to the early election, which saw the PN winning office again.
Dr Fenech Adami, who went on to claim victory in the 2003 general election as well, also reveals the political manoeuvres behind the scenes after Labour continued governing despite losing the majority of votes in the 1981 election.
He says he did not believe Mr Mintoff really wanted to remain in power without the backing of the majority of the electorate, but claims MPs such as Lino Spiteri, Joe Grima, Lorry Sant and Wistin Abela were against holding another election.