PN deputy leader Robert Arrigo has strongly criticised the police for physically forcing protestors out of the Planning Authority headquarters this morning, describing it as “a step towards dictatorship”.

“We have nearly arrived. Few more steps to dictatorship,” Arrigo posted on his Facebook wall. “Lets all unite , leave the petty differences and give government what it deserves. Up to each one of us, I suppose.”

PN MEP Roberta Metsola pinned the blame for the police officers’ heavy-handedness on the Moviment Graffitti activists directly on Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.

“Muscat’s heavy-handed sending in of the police to stop protesters and silence dissent is sad to watch,” she tweeted. “Everyone has a right to demonstrate, Mr Prime Minister, whether this is lighting a candle to demand justice or protest the environmental degradation in Malta.”

However, musician Mario Vella – who was at the forefront of today’s protest – warned the PN’s exponents that none of the activists present today have any respect for the Nationalist Party.

“The PN, or what’s left of it, is part of the problem,” he said. “Their policies have never been pro-environmental and their leader Adrian Delia is nothing more than another neoliberal with no soul and no vision. We need to return to socialism with a spine and to a genuine sense of community.”

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Tim Diacono

Tim is interested in the rapid evolution of human society and is passionate about justice, human rights and cutting-edge political debates. You can follow him on Instagram or Twitter/X at @timdiacono or reach out to him at [email protected]