Paul Muscat, Labour ‘soldier’ from 1992 election controversy, dies

Former Bormla mayor Pawlu Muscat has passed away, a mainstay of the Labour Party whose name tarnished the leadership elections of 1992.

The leadership contest during which the late Lino Spiteri had been close to being elected, before being pipped by Alfred Sant in the second round of the vote, proved highly controversial.

Muscat’s name became well known to the general public when Lino Spiteri alleged that he had confessed, to Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, to having rigged the election. Subsequently in 2000 the PL’s vigilance board was asked to investigate the claims.

But Muscat told the board that he had made up the tampering story which he had used first to upset Spiteri and subsequently in an attempt to have Alfred Sant removed, after the Labour prime minister introduced unpopular budgetary measures in 1997.

The vigilance board had decided that no vote tampering had taken place and barred Muscat from representing the party in any capacity. He was also banned from being a party delegate and could not sit on any of the party’s committees.

Muscat was known to be a staunch and outspoken Labour Party supporter.