“It was a very impulsive post. I had seen several comments on Muscat’s father passing,” he said.

In yesterday’s post, Attard said, “The vileness I witnessed tonight in the face of Joseph Muscat after his father passed fuels my desire to work towards ensuring that those who are cruel never set foot in Castille again.”

In an exclusive comment to Lovin Malta, Attard explained that he was not just referring to “the particular post which has been circulating on the internet”, but “many other comments” he had seen online.

One particular comment which has been circulating online reads, “I don’t want to get into any polemics, but you were the one who killed your father, Joseph. You killed him with worry.”

The comment was deleted from social media some time later, but it had already gained traction.

Muscat’s father had been fighting an aggressive tumour for two and a half years and succumbed to the illness yesterday.

Speaking to Lovin Malta, PN MP Alex Borg said that he personally has no idea who the individual behind this particular post is but that he “never saw him anywhere around the PN.”

“Name a single person within the PN who said anything hateful in such a difficult moment for Muscat. The reality is that Daniel Attard wants to benefit from it.”

When asked whether he regrets the spontaneous post, Attard told Lovin Malta, “I don’t regret writing in the moment, I regret being misinterpreted by people who never respected Joseph Muscat in the first place, not even in this moment.”

In his post, Attard had said that he wants to ensure that “cruel people never return to Castille” but he told Lovin Malta that he wasn’t referring to the PN but particular “cruel individuals”.

When asked who these persons are, Attard answered, “These people are already known.”

“I don’t want this whole thing to become bigger than it should be,” he continued, adding that this is the very reason why he won’t be pinpointing particular individuals.

“I’ve never been one to hold back,” Attard told the newsroom.

“PN is PN, and there are good people within the party. However, there are some people about whom I’ve already spoken out these past few months. They haven’t shown a shred of humanity.”

“If I wanted to identify certain people, I would have,” he continued.

“It is evident that Alex Borg harbours some feelings of animosity towards me,” he continued.

Here, he was referring to the comment the PN MP left on his post, saying, “Who is a good-willed Labour supporter and feels that he should vote for a PL candidate has every right to do so. However, I want to offer you an honest word of advice – leave this guy out, because he is a dangerous person and an agent of hatred and negativity.”

He went on to say that “after he used such rhetoric, his place is neither in local, nor European politics.”

“While we wish Joseph Muscat and his family our condolences for the loss of his father, it’s a disgrace to benefit from the death of another’s family member for political gain.”

“How low have you stooped? It is clear that you have no idea what this means,” Borg continued.

On this, the PL MEP candidate told the newsroom, “Their agenda is clear – they quite literally ambushed my post,” he said, referring to Borg and PN MEP candidate Miriana  Calleja Testaferrata De Noto.

“What is ironic is that they are accusing me of using the Joseph Muscat situation for electoral scope, when in reality they are the ones doing so, so much so, that Alex told people not to vote for me in the upcoming election.”

“In my post, I didn’t even mention the MEP elections – I mentioned ‘Kastilja’, referring to the 2027 general elections, which have nothing to do with me,” Attard continued.

He went on to say that he doesn’t intend on “amplifying the situation further”. “I don’t care what Alex has to say about me. What’s important is what Joseph Muscat thinks”.

What do you make of this?