Labour youths ignored as Abela ‘had a bad day’

Members of Labour’s youth wing, the Forum Żgħażagħ Laburisti (FŻL), threatened to resign last week after a last-minute cancellation of a high-profile event involving Prime Minister and Labour leader Robert Abela.

The event, titled ‘Pitch it to the Prime Minister’, had been promoted for weeks as part of Labour’s efforts to galvanise youth support ahead of the upcoming election.

It was due to take place at St James Cavalier, near Castille, last week, with staging, lighting and promotional materials already in place as attendees, including representatives from non-political NGOs, began arriving.

But less than an hour before the event was due to start, organisers were suddenly informed that Abela would not attend.

According to Labour youth insiders, the reason given was startlingly simple: the Prime Minister “had a bad day” and did not feel like participating.

Sources told The Shift that organisers were left scrambling to explain the abrupt cancellation to attendees, after weeks of preparation were undone at the eleventh hour.

The situation was made even more awkward by the fact that Abela’s official car was parked only metres away from the venue, while he remained at his office in Castille at the time he had been scheduled to appear and as youths started gathering just across the road.

While Abela did not publicly explain his decision to withdraw, sources at Castille said he had grown increasingly frustrated with what he viewed as an overloaded schedule imposed by Labour officials.

“Nothing urgent or extraordinary came up,” one official said. “It was simply Abela in a very bad mood, deciding he did not want to attend an event that had been in his diary for weeks.”

The cancellation reportedly sparked fury among organisers, with several FŻL members threatening to resign and go public over what they viewed as a humiliating snub, particularly so close to an election.

The crisis was only defused after a series of meetings led by Labour deputy leader Alex Agius Saliba, which helped avert further fallout.

Sources said the youth section agreed to step back from resigning on condition that a new date would be set for the same event.

This time, organisers are hoping the Prime Minister turns up.