[WATCH] 'Coalition of confusion will endanger your jobs, investment' Muscat tells thousands

Popular radio hosts Nate and Valentina (Photos: Chris Mangion/MediaToday)

Pre-mass meeting warm-up

The Mqabba bypass transformed into a sea of flags

A Labour government will amend the country’s Constitution to introduce an automatic revision of politicians, and persons holding important public posts, found to have wronged the country.

“I will show you that we have learned from our mistakes,” Prime Minister and Labour leader Joseph Muscat told thousands of Labour supporters gathered in Mqabba.

Muscat was referring to his decision not to sack then Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi and his chief of staff, Keith Schembri, both of whom were found to own offshore companies in Panama.

“My decision was based on the fact that I needed the two of them to continue working. I paid the political price for this decision and I shoulder the responsibility.”

Muscat moved on to pledge the introduction of a mechanism within the constitution that would take away such decisions from a prime minister’s hands.

As the Labour leader told his supporters that his party was not “elitist”, Muscat said he would never work against his country.

“I never felt the need to rest to country bashing simply to get elected to power. And I appeal all of you who love the country to remember that Malta comes first before anything else.”

As he urged the nation to fly the Maltese flag, Muscat said that Opposition leader Simon Busuttil will be “judged for escalating a lie to unprecedented levels”.

The Labour leader has maintained innocence over allegations that his wife, Michelle, owns a share in Egrant Inc, a Panamanian company.

He has reiterated that he would resign if the inquiry finds any links to his family but also challenged Simon Busuttil to resign if the inquiry proves Muscat’s innocence.

“He will be judged for escalating a lie to unprecedented levels and of being in cahoots with foreigners who want to steal your jobs,” Muscat said.

The Labour leader said that the Egrant “calumny” was made not only against him and his family, but against the country as a whole.

“After he endangered jobs and investment he is now saying that it’s not important. A person who aspires to become prime minister, and who thinks he can take people out on streets on a lie and risk stagnating the economy without knowing that he needs to shoulder responsibility, only confirms that he is not fit to run the country.”

Turning his attention to the youths, Muscat appealed to them against allowing anyone to toy with their future.

“I want to thank the University students for the beautiful welcome they gave us and for having showed where the youths stand. Don’t let anyone deride you for the choices you make. We want you with us to defend what we achieved, to continue working on civil rights.

“Don’t let the coalition of confusion, a coalition of conservatives, work against the liberal leap forward. They are against the advancement of the IVF law, and so they scare with abortion.

“Thanks to the IVF legislation we introduced, 62 babies were born. We are convinced in that we want IVF services to advance, to help people become parents. I am personally making this commitment: because this is social justice; this is equality; this is Malta for all.”

Warning against electing a Nationalist government, the Prime Minister said that Busuttil will fail to implement his pledges without increasing VAT, utility bills and National Insurance.

“The possibility that the most important decisions that affect jobs and investment are taken by this coalition of confusion is not a joke. You have to decide between a prime minister held hostage by a seat majority who everyday has to battle to keep his government in power, and a stable government whom you know can guarantee work for all.”