Now is not the time to take risks that could threaten the country's sound finances and stability, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi told supporters in Ta' Giorni this evening.
"Imagine Labour was elected five years ago. The shipyards would still be open. I don't know what they would have done during the Libya crisis but, all I know is that I was told I was breaching the Constitution. How would Labour have acted in the financial crisis?... When sitting in the decision-making chair, an error of judgement could have huge consequences," he said.
He added that Labour leader Joseph Muscat had been mistaken about EU accession, perhaps because he was young back then. But after that, he was wrong about the Euro changeover, about following the Cyprus economic model and now about about failing to report wrongdoing at a PL club to the police.
"All these mistakes don't give us peace of mind," he said at a PN activity.
Dr Gonzi said Malta's economic success was thanks to the sacrifices people made when the government had to make tough decisions to maintain sound finances during "these five difficult years."
He pointed out how, just today, items in the news proved that these decisions were bearing fruit. These included the high profits registered by HSBC, record passenger movements registered by the Malta International Airport, Lufthansa's announcements to improve summer schedule and the hefty investment announced by Scott's supermarket.
"When they open the ballot boxes on March 9, my colleagues and I will know we did our best and the choice will then be in your hands... I have no doubt it will be the right one," he said.
He asked people to carefully weigh their options and keep in mind that their decision would affect the next five years. First time voters, he said, should not vote for change for the sake of it. They needed to understand that change could be for the worse.
David Grixti, a lawyer who works in financial services, said foreign investors asked about the stability of the economy and the quality of human resources. Many questioned why opinion polls showed people wanted change given the positive economic scenario and low unemployment rate. Their concern was that a change in government would rattle the stable economy.
Helga Ellul, former CEO of Playmobil, spoke about the way she admired how government invested in human resources.