Rule of law NGO Repubblika dubbed Prime Minister Robert Abela a ‘fake Father Christmas’ after his announcement to increase benefits
Bonġu News on Saturday 1 April 2023
PM announces increase in stipends
Prime Minister Robert Abela has announced an increase in stipends and children’s allowance. Abela made this announcement at the Labour Party’s Freedom Day celebration in Vittoriosa on Thursday evening.
However, the prime minister did not specify the announced increases. He also promised the strengthening of equality laws and reiterated his pledge for a new Gozo hospital.
These promises come after the Labour Party’s popularity has plummeted in recent polls. Abela said people chose to trust Labour because the party always kept its word and was not arrogant.
Repubblika: PM ‘a fake Father Christmas’
“We expect Robert Abela to be Prime Minister and not a fake Father Christmas”, Repubblika said on Friday. The rule of law NGO said Abela’s pledges are a “pathetic effort” to divert attention from recent government scandals.
Repubblika referred to the “hospitals fraud” and the WhatsApp chats between Rosianne Cutajar and Yorgen Fenech. The group said Abela’s government treats people like fools by increasing benefits by a few euros.
BirdLife: Shots at roosting white storks
White storks came under fire while roosting overnight in Zabbar and Marsaskala, BirdLife Malta said. Around 9.30pm on Thursday, three shots were fired from two locations near the storks, activists said.
The police were called on the scene and the Rapid Intervention Unit apprehended suspects in a road block. A police spokesperson confirmed on Friday that the suspects were questioned and that investigations are underway.
BirdLife Malta said only 33 storks out of the initial flock of around 50 were accounted for on Friday morning.
Labour TV ordered to report on ADPD
In a watershed decision, the Broadcasting Authority ordered Labour’s One TV to report a media conference by ADPD.
The green party’s news conference on the hospitals scandal earlier this month unsurprisingly went unreported on One. ADPD said in its complaint to the BA that One failed in its obligation to be impartial.
The BA ordered One to report on the media conference on Thursday evening, three weeks after it took place. This decision followed a constitutional court’s declaration that all TV and radio stations must be impartial.
