News • 12 JANUARY 2003

MLP may discuss Karmenu Vella and Louis Buhagiar participation at L-Istrina soon

The national executive of the Malta Labour Party met Friday to discuss various items which were on the agenda, the priority being the VAT and the partnership issue. But during the long meeting a couple of members of the executive committee wanted an explanation regarding the participation of Karmenu Vella and Louis Buhagiar during the charity show l-Istrina.

Labour MPs, Karmenu Vella and Louis Buhagiar, had broken the much-publicised Labour Party boycott of the popular annual fund-raising event L-Istrina although MLP leader Dr Alfred Sant and his allies wanted such a boycott.

Several members of the executive committee, none of whom are Members of Parliament or high officials within the party, wanted an explanation from the people themselves and from the party about the boycott stand. One of them even asked what the position of the MLP vis-à-vis the programme L-Istrina is and whether there is any discipline within the party.

There was also talk about Keith Grech's article on the Malta Independent where he wrote against a boycott regarding the EU referendum. Grech who is an MLP councillor for St Paul's Bay and a candidate for the MLP in the ninth district, also criticised the MLP regarding the boycott on "Where's Everybody" programmes.

Meanwhile the discussions at the national executive of the MLP were more about the VAT and partnership issue. It is understood that there was an agreement across the board that VAT is here to stay. Meanwhile the hierarchy of the party also spoke in favour of partnership with the EU.

When one of the members spoke about the l-Istrina programme, about the participation of Karmenu Vella and Louis Buhagiar, there was an agreement that such items may be discussed in the near future. The same goes for Keith Grech who does not agree with the boycott's agenda of the Malta Labour Party.

The MLP is in the same position of its ally the General Workers' Union where a good number of high officials are in favour of EU enlargement. But they are afraid to speak because they could lose their position within the union's set-up.