The leaders of the two major parties had their final televised debate tonight, organised by the Broadcasting Authority.
But it was no ‘clash of the titans’ - it was an hour of civilised monologues in which both Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Nationalist Party Leader Simon Busuttil stuck to their prepared scripts avoiding any form of political confrontation.
Riding on the ‘good economy’ trump card, Dr Muscat insisted that electing his government would allow Labour to deliver on the last four successful years “completing its 10-year project”.
On the other hand, Dr Busuttil insisted that the fact that Labour was not able to complete its full mandate despite a historic 2013 landslide proved that the country needed stability and a fresh start to get rid of “the corrupt clique at Castille”.
Repeating the main proposals made during the electoral campaign, both leaders attempted to directly address tele-viewers making the same arguments made in the last month of electioneering.
Dr Muscat said that while the PN leader was untested and incapable of steering the economy further, Labour would continue to produce the desired economic results through a raft of proposals addressing things that were not completed during his first term.
He said his government would continue to focus on further strengthening civil liberties, reducing taxation and economic growth. Labour, he said, was the only guarantee to prosperity.
Dr Busuttil said that the electorate has been called to choose prematurely because the government led by Joseph Muscat has “drowned in corruption”.
Promising that a new PN government would “return the country to normality”, he said his government would restore confidence in the island even abroad and would make the economy grow faster without the weight of corruption.
The PN leader said that, after four years, Dr Muscat had not managed to deliver what he promised and led a government where the country’s wealth was hijacked by his best friends, Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi.
The electorate, he said, had a clear choice.
“Five more years of corruption under Labour or a fresh start with justice and prosperity for all.”