‘We have a government that has taken us back decades’ – Bernard Grech on power cuts and bay closures
The country has a Government that has “taken us back decades”, Nationalist Party leader, Bernard Grech, said while referring to recent power cuts and bay closures.
During an interview on NET Television, Bernard Grech said that “the country is going through a crisis” and despite his party “showing the way forward”, the Government is not realising the crisis that it is creating for its people.
The Opposition leader criticised the Government’s lack of investment in the electricity distribution system, citing the Times of Malta’s finding that Enemalta spent less in 2023 than it did back in 2014.
Grech described how Abela had told MCESD that he would make an “unprecedented investment” to bolster the distribution grid last summer, before saying that it would be better for him to practise good politics.
Grech said that despite this pledge made last year, many families are still going many hours without electricity, some businesses are going out of business as a result of these issues, and tourists are complaining, as a result of these power outages, for being left sweating in the scorching heat while on holiday in the country.
“Everyone is suffering”, he said, “This is affecting all sectors and all people.”
Grech then condemned the incumbent Government for being “absent” as people are asking for something to be done. The PN leader also reminded listeners about Energy Minister, Miriam Dalli’s statement that the country would not have bad power cuts this summer.
He continued that while Maltese and Gozitans are already having prolonged power cuts, the Government is still waiting for its temporary power station to arrive.
Grech thus called for Energy Minister Dalli and the Government to assume political responsibility, saying that “the people deserve better” and that “we cannot pretend like nothing is happening.”
“Today they have abandoned all Maltese and Gozitan people”, Grech said, “We need a Minister and Prime Minister who are proactive, not reactive in times of crisis.”
The Nationalist Party leader reiterated his criticisms over this Government’s planning, and said that the people deserve a Government that can provide peace of mind during these times. He said that a Nationalist Government can work to prevent crises before they arise.
On the subject of bay closures, Grech said that several bays have been forced to close due to drainage issues.
He also blamed this issue on the Labour Government, who he said continues to dump untreated sewage into the sea. Grech remarked that this Government has been “undoing a lot of the work done by past PN Governments.”
Following these comments, the discussion moved to the health sector – another sector which the Nationalist Party has been vocal about being in crisis.
Bernard Grech stated that “no single sector is functioning properly.” Grech followed this by noting that there is one sector functioning well: the sector of corruption.
“This is not only a Government that doesn’t plan, but clearly one that lies to the Maltese and Gozitan people”, he said.
The PN leader said this comment while referencing the ‘new’ hospital ward that made the news this past week. Earlier this week, the Medical Association of Malta (MAM) stated that the new hospital ward that was recently inaugurated by Health Minister, Jo Etienne Abela, at Mater Dei Hospital was actually first opened back in 2020 as one of many make-shift temporary wards used to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
Grech then stated that present infrastructure cannot keep up with the country’s “exploding” population numbers.
He concluded the interview on party media by pledging that if elected to Government, the Nationalist Party will build a new hospital in Gozo – “something that this Government has been saying it will do for years, spent money for, and never did”, Grech commented.
He added that on top of this, the PN would also give life to the health services in St. Luke’s Hospital, as well as improve emergency services alongside private health companies. Grech also repeated how a PN government would “plan beforehand and work proactively.”