A public spat between Labour secretary-general Jason Micallef and Labour MP José Herrera quickly turned into a nasty bout of trading insults – witnessed by onlookers at a restaurant earlier this month – but which Herrera has dismissed as nothing but “rough joking”.
The incident occurred at the Tunny Net restaurant in Mellieha, when Micallef and Herrera were suddenly seen to be raising their voices and insulting each other. They were sitting at a table with Labour party journalists.
The row was discernible by what onlookers said was “a loud exchange of insults” but when contacted by MaltaToday José Herrera downplayed the incident and denied the use of bad language during the row.
“We were just joking. Jason is one of my best friends and I have the utmost respect for him,” Herrera said of the Labour secretary-general.
“It was no argument. It’s been totally misinterpreted. We were joking and a having a good time. We were just shouting, horsing about. But there was no fight. It’s a blatant lie.”