Election 2022: Here’s What Malta’s Labour Party Got Up To During Week Three
We’re officially at the end of week three for this election’s electoral campaign – and the Labour Party has finally released its long-awaited electoral manifesto.
In terms of the manifesto, Abela had so far been unveiling some proposals during press conferences. However, an announcement at a mass meeting last week revealed that the document would be published on Friday, with the party publishing its manifesto in full yesterday.
Containing 1,000 proposals, the PL published its manifesto during the General Conference last night, with Prime Minister Robert Abela stating it is promoting the concept of fairness in society.
And this came just the day after Prime Minister Robert Abela and Opposition leader Bernard Grech faced off in the first debate for this electoral campaign, held at the University of Malta.
The Public Broadcasting Authority also announced that Prime Minister Robert Abela and PN leader Bernard Grech will face off in a televised debate on Malta’s national broadcaster, TVM, on 23rd March.
And while Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli took a Eurovision dig at PN candidate Julie Zahra, Rosianne Cutajar said that if she “were a PN member, she would rip up her tessera and return to sender”.
Cutajar was also once again caught treating, with photos sent to Lovin Malta showing Cutajar visiting voters and their children outside of San Bastjan Primary School, handing them out mugs celebrating women.
Economy Minister Silvio Schembri reported a man straight to the police commissioner over a Facebook comment that “one can expect a car bomb” with the Labour Party.
Labour president Ramona Attard also delivered a powerful speech at her party’s general conference on Friday, recounting how she suffered a pregnancy miscarriage on that exact day seven years ago.
Apart from the newly released manifesto, what was pledged this week?
The Labour Party pledged to make banking easier by way of introducing a right to a basic bank account for businesses as well as those who are self-employed.
The proposal addressed the qualms of business owners, of whom have spoken out about the difficulties behind opening a bank account in Malta; a consequence of rigorous due-diligence checks following Malta’s greylisting.
The PL also pledged that the morning-after pill and contraceptive pills will be offered for free at pharmacies and health centres, as well as the IUD.
Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Chris Fearne also pledged that the Labour Party will begin working towards Malta’s first crematorium in its first 100 days in Government if it is elected. Along with that, it also plans to add more medications to the Government formulary, for conditions such as fibromyalgia and even HIV.
Trade schools are set to make something of a comeback in the next legislature, with both the Labour Party and the Nationalist Party issuing similar proposals.
PL deputy leader Daniel Micallef warned that the closure of trade schools, which provided education in trades at a secondary school level, back in the 1990s has left a skills vacuum in the country.
The Labour Party also pledged to set up an app to inform people which parts of the countryside are public land and which are private.
And finally, trade union membership will become mandatory as a means of clamping down on worker exploitation, the PL proposed.
BONUS
At the very tail end of the week, former MP Joe Debono Grech celebrated Labour supporters profiting off of corruption in what has to be one of the most absurd moments of the election so far.
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