“They are still an elitist clan who think they have a right to incite the mob, to sow hatred and to instil cruelty,” Robert Abela yelled in his speech marking a year since his election victory.

The ever-positive and unifying force that is Robert Abela of course only had respectful words to say about the opposition.

Calmly spitting blood, he raged violently against “the others” who “thought that we’re like them”.

Intent on sowing unity and reconciliation, he spent most of his speech demonising and vilifying the opposition.

“If Bernard Grech were prime minister he would crucify you, crucify you,” he yelled.

“Do you remember our friends from down the road and the conspiracy they started?” he fomented. “They even beat up their own people…. when they leave the party, they attack them even more – just think what they will do to you, the workers”.

Abela never mentioned the sad case of Mark Camilleri, a committed Socialist and staunch Labour loyalist. When Camilleri revealed the truth about Labour’s corruption, he was viciously hounded.  Abela’s MP, Rosianne Cutajar, demanded his arrest. Labour’s attorney general and police commissioner swiftly sprang into action to press charges against him.

Abela never mentioned the hostility directed at Desmond Zammit Marmara, a genuine lifelong Labour activist and former Labour councillor, when he dared to criticise his own party.

Abela never referred to the intimidating threats Gzira Labour Mayor Conrad Borg Manche’ received when he opposed Labour’s plan to turn Gzira’s last green area into a petrol station.

He didn’t remind his audience they were calling Evarist Bartolo a snake because of his recent Damascene conversion.

Abela never chastised Labour officials and activists from Laburisti sal-mewt who tormented Godfrey and Marlene Farrugia when they left the party in disgust.

“They were and remain divided. They occasionally unite to attack those who aren’t part of them,” Abela insisted.

“I saw their leader with my own eyes inciting people both inside and outside parliament,” he accused. “All of you saw how they behaved in parliament, the same arrogant attitude that they had when in power, they still have today… they are proud and arrogant”.

The man who accused others of sowing hatred dedicated the bulk of his speech to dehumanising the opposition.

“How can you feel comfortable with these people?” he agitated.

Abela then suddenly turned virtuous. “Humility is the weapon that disarms the arrogance of the others,” he preached.

“We are not a proud party, we are listening, let us keep our feet on the ground,” he warned.  Shouldn’t he set the example? Isn’t he the leader?  Why is he asking his activists to do his job?

Rosianne Cutajar’s chats were all his supporters were talking about. But Abela never mentioned them. He took no action against her.  She’s still a Labour MP, still chairman of the parliamentary health committee, and is probably still a consultant for ITS raking in thousands.

Did he admonish her for filing a libel suit and a criminal complaint against another Labour party member who told the truth?

Neither did Abela condemn Ian Borg for building a swimming pool while proceedings were underway to determine its legality.  No enforcement order has been issued now that it’s declared illegal.

All Abela said is, “Ian Borg should be treated like any other citizen”.  What rubbish. Ian Borg is the Foreign Affairs Minister.  He should be held to far higher scrutiny than any private citizen.

Abela doesn’t need to wait for the sluggish institutions, he should be the one to sort out Borg.

Abela never uttered a word against Anton Refalo when he was caught with a piece of history in his garden. He hasn’t expressed himself about Silvio Schembri’s shameless use of district offices provided by construction magnates benefitting from government decisions, or Schembri’s refusal to answer basic questions about rent.

Yet Abela wants his supporters to police his ministers while he cowers under his desk.

“You get results because you are not afraid to take decisions,” Abela declared in self-congratulation. Abela’s terrified of decisions – he’s done nothing about Rosianne Cutajar, Anton Refalo, Ian Borg or Silvio Schembri.  He can’t, especially now, that his trust rating has plummeted.

That massive blow from Sunday morning’s polls truly shook Abela. His histrionic speech stinks of panic.

He’s no longer positive. He’s just bitter and vindictive. He’s resurrecting old lies from ONE’s archives to attack the opposition.

“They have the same attitude as when they stated they would vote willingly (jivvotaw bil-qalb) for decisions that hurt the people, the same attitude as when they claimed poverty and unemployment were a mere perception, the same attitude as when somebody said ‘let the prices rise’, the same attitude of when they asked, “where are the Labour supporters (Fejn huma l-Laburisti)?”

How sad. Abela resorts to lies created by ONE, some from well over two decades ago, to score cheap political points. That smells of real desperation.

The irony is that Abela accuses the opposition of being “anchored in the past”. He falsely claims “we are looking to the future (harsitna lejn il-futur).”

“When the election is over, they deceive the people,” Abela accused.

The last election the Nationalist Party won was in 2008. Labour won in 2013, 2017 and 2022.

We all know who deceived the people – those who promised €200 million of foreign investment into our hospitals and who entered into a €100 million default agreement with Steward.

It was those who hid the agreements even from cabinet, who failed to retake the hospitals and continued to squander hundreds of millions of euros and who promised 4,000 students at the American University of Malta.

It was those who promised a new Gozo hospital, a newly refurbished St Luke’s, a new nursing school, a new psychiatric hospital and more beds at Karin Grech.

Labour also promised meritocracy and an end to corruption.

But, according to Abela, “When we give our word, we keep it.”