PN leader Adrian Delia today expressed confidence the Nationalist could win the next general election, saying the party’s election campaign would begin on January 1.
Addressing his first mass meeting in his new role during the PN’s Independence Day celebrations, Dr Delia said the PN would give the country back to the people.
He vowed to build a strong and united Opposition, which would fight for the people.
“I am not afraid of Joseph Muscat”, Dr Delia said, rubbishing claims by Labour media that he had turned down an offer to meet the Prime Minister.
Dr Delia said the government had turned Malta into a soulless country.
He questioned what Labour stood for, and challenged the Prime Minister to give his MPs a free vote in Parliament on all matters of conscience.
The PN leader hit out at the government for wanting to “commercialise” the human body by virtue of its stance on prostitution.
He called for a new united way of doing politics, saying Malta was too small to be politically divided.
Dr Delia hit out at a number government policies over the years, including education, transport and the economy.
He reminded that under a PN government, a new school every year used to be built.
Dr Delia said Labour had no interest in improving education, as it was easier to buy votes and manipulate people’s minds.
On transport, Dr Delia said the government lacked a long-term vision.
He said its plan to rebuild all of Maltese roads would only result in more traffic.
All the traffic congestion was having both an economic and a psychological burden he said, as it made planning one’s journey impossible.
Turning to the economy, Dr Delia said the government was still riding upon the strong foundations left by the Nationalists.
He questioned where the surplus the government always boasted about was going. He argued that government corruption left an impact on everyone’s pockets.
Dr Delia hit out at the government for threatening to close down Air Malta unless workers bowed to its will.
Speaking about his “new way” of doing politics, Dr Delia said in his first few days as PN leader, he had already taken decisions to speed up the deputy leadership elections, instead of having them drag till February.
Dr Delia expressed his belief in family values, pledging to protect life from conception till death.
He said he believed in equal opportunities, sustainable development and transparency, as well as a zero tolerance to corruption.
The three other leadership candidates, Chris Said, Alex Perici Calascione and Frank Portelli all lined up on stage behind Dr Delia as a show of unity.
Alex Borg Olivier, son of former Prime Minister George Borg Olivier, addressed the meeting prior to Dr Delia.