[WATCH] Local councils elections 'not about leadership trust' - Said

Said says local council campagin 'not about leadership trust'

The Nationalist Party would consider "an improvement" over the 2012 elections results a satisfactory result. In 2012, the PN obtained 40.7% compared with Labour's 57.3%.

Addressing a press conference at the PN headquarters, Secretary General Chris Said, flanked by deputy leaders Beppe Fenech Adami and Mario de Marco, also said that these elections were not about the leaders.

"People are increasingly becoming more focused on what their localities need and which councillors can offer that, rather than which political party should lead their local council," Said said, when asked whether council elections served as a benchmark for the political parties.
De Marco went on to point out that voter turnout in council elections is usually lower.

Said said the PN's aim was to continue working on the localities it currently leads. Out of the 36 contesting the elections in Malta and Gozo, 14 have a PN majority. He said, that these councils all showed that they could work in favour of the residents, irrespective of the party in government.

Over the past days, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat accused PN leader Simon Busuttil of "hiding from the media". Conspicuosly, the launch of the PN's campaign had been led by its leader, while today's final press conference in relation with the council elections was deliver the deputy leaders and Said.

According to the Secretary General, Busuttil was busy with campaign work.

Asked whether giving Busuttil less media platform formed part of the PN's strategy for the council elections, Said said the leader had visited the localities, met with residents and put forward the party's proposals, participated in televised debates and in interviews on Radio 101 - the party's radio station.

"Simon Busuttil took a leading role in the campaign but this is not about trust in the PN leader, the deputy leaders or myself, but about the councillors," he said.

The PN said the difference between Labour and PN was that the latter focused its campaign on its candidates and the localities while the PL turned it into a national event about Joseph Muscat.

"We saw that the PN that focused on the local councils, presenting the best candidates while Labour and Joseph Muscat only care about winning and appearing strong," the PN said.

Said said that at the end of the day, the elections were not going to affect the government but the local councils. He said that the PN put forward 700 proposals for the council elections while Labour didn't come up with any.

De Marco said Labour had banked on its power of incumbency bordering on the shameful. Referring to The Times' editorial, De Marco said Muscat exercised the power of incumbency to influence these elections.

"Many people who voted Labour for the first time are disappointed because the Labour's pledges of doing politics different had vanished into thin air" he said.

Fenech Adami went on to add that government had simply thrown away its pledges of meritocracy, transparency and accountability