Lawrence Gonzi was forced to apologise yesterday for a false claim he made on television regarding the election date, prompting Joseph Muscat to accuse him of lying repeatedly.
Another day, another lie
The Prime Minister said on TVAM that he chose March 9 as the election date because it coincided with the upcoming local council election.
Slamming Dr Muscat as “superficial” and “ridiculous” for suggesting an earlier date, Dr Gonzi said the law only allowed local council elections to be pushed to a later date but not brought forward.
Therefore, if he had scheduled the election earlier, as suggested by the Labour leader, taxpayers would have to fork out another €1 million to hold two separate elections, Dr Gonzi said.
The Labour leader pointed out in a press conference two hours later that the law said no such thing and the local council election could have, in fact, been brought forward to a date in February.
“Another day, another lie,” Dr Muscat said as party officials handed out extracts of the law.
“The election date is the Prime Minister’s prerogative but if he wants to cling to power until the last minute he should not use me or the law as an excuse. He should simply come clean and say this is what he thinks will benefit his party,” Dr Muscat said.
He added that Dr Gonzi was still in time to change the election date if his only constraint was really an incorrect reading of the law.
“I’m calling his bluff,” Dr Muscat said, adding that this was the latest in a series of lies by the Prime Minister. Labour was prepared to rebut each one.
A few hours later, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a statement “clarifying” what Dr Gonzi had said earlier, admitting that the law “does permit” the local council election date to move forward or backward.
“The election date is March 9 and this was chosen in the country’s best interest,” a spokesman added, also pointing out that the Prime Minister could by law have chosen a later date.
The spokesman added that Dr Gonzi “regrets the comments he made”.
In his press conference, Dr Muscat was asked whether he wanted an earlier campaign because he feared Labour would lose its hefty poll lead once Dr Gonzi started to shine during the campaign.
He replied: “Leaders don’t follow numbers, they change them.
“The Prime Minister prides himself on being at his best during a campaign and at his worst during the legislature. I will keep my best for governing.”
Dr Muscat also responded to Dr Gonzi’s questions on Labour’s financing by saying Labour was the only party to publish its accounts annually.
“The Prime Minister does not seem to understand how good governance can lead to stable and sustainable finances,” he said, pointing out the PN had had 25 years to pass a law on party financing but refused to do so.