Jason Micallef’s Facebook post decrying the “untouchables” who dampened the Labour Party’s May 1 celebrations seemed like another voice of indignation over the Panama affair.
But for Labour functionaries, Mr Micallef’s comment was more than just a message chastising Minister Without Portfolio Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Keith Schembri.
Sources close to the party pointed to the tail end of his post on Saturday, which spoke of the damage done to “the genuine passengers who had always been on the ship in good times and bad times”.
The reference to “good times and bad times” represented the feelings of many within the grass roots, who viewed Dr Mizzi and Mr Schembri as “Johnny-come-latelies” in the Labour Party, the sources said.
“There is a feeling within a sizeable portion of the party grass roots who feel the Panama affair and the indignation shown by Dr Mizzi risks threatening the party’s electoral chances,” the sources said.
The feeling may be less strong against Mr Schembri, who is less of a known face at party club level. The sources said Mr Schembri’s low profile allowed Dr Muscat to deflect attention off his chief of staff by repeatedly focusing on Dr Mizzi in his utterances on the Panama affair.
It is within this context that Mr Micallef, a former Labour general secretary, captured the mood of those in the party who were left questioning the Prime Minister’s choices after last week’s Cabinet reshuffle. The comment is more significant coming from Mr Micallef, who had resigned his party position in 2009 after Dr Muscat had moved to abolish the post of party general secretary, the sources noted. At the time, Mr Micallef was considered a close friend of Dr Muscat and very few believed the leader would move him out of the party – sideways into One TV.
“Back then, Joseph Muscat showed his mettle and acted to move Jason Micallef out of the way, gaining a reputation as someone who could make hard decisions. Unfortunately, this is something the Prime Minister seems to have been unable or unwilling to do now with his two close friends: Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri,” the sources said.
And underneath the euphoria at yesterday’s Valletta meeting, another facet of the growing tension was Labour Whip Godfrey Farrugia’s absence from the event.
Dr Farrugia had insisted at the Labour general conference last month that “no one in the party was indispensable except the Prime Minister”, adding later on that he would have resigned had he been in Dr Mizzi’s situation.
To what extent this tension will keep building up still has to be seen but the next major test is expected to be a parliamentary motion of no confidence in Dr Mizzi, presented by independent MP Marlene Farrugia.
The House Business Committee, which sets Parliament’s agenda, is today expected to discuss when to schedule the debate on the motion.