The Democratic Party has asked the prime minister to grant it a seat on the Waste Management Committee which will discuss waste management options for the future.
The Nationalist Party last week, before the leadership election, turned down an invitation to nominate anyone.
The prime minister subsequently urged new PN leader Adrian Delia to reverse the decision immediately, but Dr Delia replied that he first had to see what role a PN representative would have, and consult the parliamentary group.
PD MPs Marlene and Godfrey Farrugia in a letter to Dr Muscat today said that as representatives of the PD and as part of the Opposition, they wanted to be represented on the committee.
Godfrey Farrugia was nominated to sit on the committee.
"We appeal to your democratic credentials not to create obstacles," the PD MPs said
In a reply, Environment Minister Jose Herrera said the government will adhere to the court decision that the PD was part of the Nationalist Party and in spite of the PN's refusal to nominate someone on the committee, it was still willing to accept a nomination which could be from a member of the PD.
In a statement, the PD said that in a small island nation with limited land space, waste management requires careful planning as well as supervised, exact implementation of any such plan. Any such plan would require a long-term vision but with defined short- and medium- term solutions which put the environment as its main objective
"Partit Demokratiku reiterates that the Opposition is duty bound to actively represent all those who entrusted it with the responsibility of scrutinising the government's operations, while coming up with alternative solutions.
"In parliamentary democracies abstaining from participating in committees, such as this one, only encourages the Government to further alienate the people from the decision-making process. Lack of consultation with those representing the people on both sides of the house, can only lead to one-sided plans that benefit a segment rather than the entirety of the Maltese population," the PD said.
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