The other side of the Imnarja coin is… politics

Labour MP Joseph Sammut, the party’s spokesperson on agriculture, issued a damper on the Imnarja celebrations today, claiming the exhibition of agricultural products today had registered yet another decrease in exhibitors.

The MP said this decrease in produce, which is generally presented for a competitive showcase at the Buskett woodland, “is a clear signal of the lack of trust in government and the agricultural authorities.”

Sammut called it a “silent protest”. “It is a significant one, at the way the Nationalist government is crushing farmers, particularly those involved in the rearing of pigs, cows, chickens and rabbits,” Sammut said.

The MP said the government was not doing anything to clamp down on the “indiscriminate” importation of inferior meat products, which he said was being sold off as fresh produce.

He added that while manure and sewage were important sources of energy, the government was not looking at biomass as a solution to the exorbitant prices of water and electricity.

“Government must abandon its antiquated agricultural policy and adopt a technologically-based plan, that helps generate a new revenue stream for farmers and rearers. Closing down farms is not going to help anybody… We need to hear something on this from the government: not just cosmetic touches, but concrete actions. The lack of participation today is a direct protest against government.”

In its reaction to Labour’s statement, the minister for rural affairs George Pullicino latched on to a political chestnut: the infamous removal of the feast from the public holiday calendar in 1981 under a Labour government.

“Imnarja is as popular as ever, despite the fact that Labour had removed it from public holiday status. If Sammut had visited the Imnarja festival, he would have seen stands from 19 EU member states participating in the European Rural Network conference in Malta,” Pullicino said.

The minister said that government’s promotion of agricultural produce has led to agricultural festivals in towns and villages across Malta, numbering 12 in total which include milk, tuna, pork and honey as themes. “The Labour MP should know government has initiated a scheme that helps cultural activities related to village identity,” Pullicino said.

The minister added that farmers had contributed €40 million in modernisation work on farms and plants, and had benefited from a €19 million European Rural Development Programme.