Nationalist Party Leader Alex Borg addressed a Mass Meeting in Victoria, Gozo, on Tuesday evening and said that ”the hour of the Maltese people is upon us. Our country is calling us. Now is the moment to stand up and say, Here I am, ready to do my part.”

Alex Borg delivered a clear message on ”traditional pastimes.” He said that today he can say with ”humility and pride that, whatever others may say, hunting and trapping will be safeguarded. Others will try to frighten people with the past because they are still stuck 13 years ago. I am looking only to the future, and with me you know where you stand.”

The PN Leader said that ”this is the moment to stop arrogance, the past, hatred, and the politics of blue and red. We must think only of the national interest.”

Before an enthusiastic crowd on the island of his birth, Gozo, the Leader of the PN Leader said that ”today we are here just four days before the people vote in Saturday’s general election. I am here not to speak to you as Party Leader, but to speak to you as the Alex you know. Alex who is proud to be from Gozo and whose heart remains with the Gozitan people.”

He saluted two people he described as icons who contributed greatly to the island of Gozo – Giovanna Debono, to whom he promised that he would continue to embrace the people-centred politics she always practised, and Anton Tabone, who was present for the Mass Meeting. Alex Borg promised Anton Tabone that, if the people place their trust in him and the PN is in Government, he will fulfil his dream and make Gozo a region.

Alex Borg said that it was precisely from Gozo that he learned and found the courage to begin his political journey, and stated that today he feels humbled to be called the Leader of the Party that gave birth to independent Malta, European Malta, and the Malta that will give A Fresh Start to its people.

The PN Leader said he wants Gozo to stop being an afterthought and instead become a powerful engine. “Gozo has its own identity and its own courage, and I want to give it the opportunity to reach its full potential.”

He said that over these four weeks the Nationalist Party led a positive campaign based on politics that unites a nation; politics that can provide a beautiful future for all generations.

Alex Borg said that, as he promised when taking his oath as Leader of the Opposition, he is embracing every day a politics of the white and the red, and said that if the people place their trust in the PN, a Nationalist Government ”will neither be a government that dismisses people nor one that distinguishes between red and blue. We will be a government for everyone. Whether you are Nationalist, Labour or do not vote, you can work with us.”

Alex Borg said that in the small community of Gozo there are many who are afraid to make their voice heard, but he reassured everyone that ”no one has anything to fear from a Nationalist Government that wants to strengthen Gozo and the Gozitans.” He stated that he wants to lead a government that is for everyone and that creates prosperity for everyone.

”A Nationalist Government will ensure that Gozo is no longer mentioned only on the eve of an election, but is placed at the centre of the PN’s national plan.” Alex Borg said that he ”looks at Gozo with hope, and will turn challenges into opportunities. While others failed to see the potential of the people, the Nationalist Party saw that people are yearning for A Fresh Start.”

Alex Borg said that, for others, a strong economy means numbers on paper, but for the PN the economy is strong when people are living better.

The PN Leader addressed those who have always voted for the Labour Party and today no longer identify with the party they had always embraced, telling them ”not to be afraid to choose A Fresh Start, just as Ivan Bartolo, Charles Azzopardi, Edmond Cuschieri and Conrad Borg Manchè were not afraid when they all felt that the Labour Party no longer represented them and joined the Nationalist Party.”

Borg concluded by saying that, ”on the 30th of May, we do not have a choice between two parties, but a choice about the future of our country. Either more of the same, or A Fresh Start. Alex cannot do it alone. But with you beside me, I can do it. Our hour has arrived: stand up and say, here I am, ready to do my part.”

Noel Formosa and Abigail Micallef also addressed the crowd.

Noel Formosa, Nationalist Mayor of San Lawrenz, said that this is a providential election because the people have the opportunity to put the country back on the right track towards sustainable development. He said that Nationalist Governments have always taken decisions in favour of Gozo and the Gozitans -decisions we are still benefiting from today.

Noel Formosa thanked Alex Borg for ”managing, in these seven months, to give the Nationalist Party A Fresh Start. Thank you, dear Alex, for offering your youth to the country. Thank you for healing the wounds of many people. Thank you for today offering hope to many Maltese and Gozitans. Take heart. The race has never been this beautiful.”

Deputy Mayor of Kercem, Abigail Micallef, spoke as a 22-year-old Gozitan young woman who has always believed that young people belong at the decision-making table, because change comes when there are people who believe they can make a difference. She said that although she had never thought she would become active in politics, today, because someone believed in her, politics is now part of her daily life. Youth brings energy and ideas to politics.

Abigail Micallef said that over the past two years she learned one important thing: that politics which makes a difference first listens, then engages in dialogue, and then delivers. ”This is what Nationalist Governments have always done, and this is what they will do again with Alex Borg as Prime Minister – with investment in better connectivity, more ferries and the enlargement of Mgarr Harbour, but also with politics that understands that Gozo is community, identity, volunteering, organisations, feasts and people.”

Photo: PN

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