Breaking: Justyne Caruana resigns from Education Minister

Dec 22 2021

It has just been confirmed that Education Minister Justyne Caruana has resigned from her post, following a damning report released by the Standards Commissioner.

Prime Minister Robert Abela has accepted Caruana’s resignation, after having recently stated that everyone in government should shoulder responsibility.

This also comes after members of the UHM teacher’s union UPE sent a symbolic ‘pudding’ to the now former education minister. Union of Professional Educators executive head Graham Sansone said this week that Caruana earned the union’s ‘pudina’ for ‘blunder that has irritated so many hard-working educators.’

The Nationalist Party had also written to the Speaker of the House calling for a Standards Committee meeting to be held this week to discuss Caruana. “We believe that the Speaker should take the necessary steps and ensure that the Committee on Standards in Public Life meets urgently.”

Justyne Caruana took to Facebook to announce the resignation. She said that she entered politics to serve and that she was never tied to the seat of power. She therefore felt that this would be the best decision for the government and the Labour Party.

#MaltaDaily

Photo Source: Justyne Caruana FB, Robert Abela FB

Malta registers the highest number of daily cases at 582

Dec 22 2021

Malta has registered a record-breaking amount of daily cases at 582, bringing up the number of active cases to a whopping 2991.

The last time Malta registered more than 500 daily cases was on the 10th of March 2021 at 510 cases.

Yesterday’s registered daily cases also breaks the second highest record with 386 new cases.

Two people, aged 52 and 53, sadly passed away due to COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

Despite these worrying numbers, hospitalisation remains significantly low, with 47 patients currently being treated at Mater Dei, 4 of whom being in the ITU.

Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne had emphasised how hospitalisations are the main factor to consider at this point given the vaccination rollout.

Health authorities are pushing for people to get their booster shot to curb the spike which is dominating Europe. Till yesterday, 1,019,517 doses of the vaccine were administered, 177,989 of which were booster shots.

#MaltaDaily

Photo Source: Wikipedia, Sahha

Teachers respond to criticism over sending kids home with their books for the holidays

Dec 22 2021

Parents have been reporting that their children are being sent back home with all their books for the Christmas holidays.

Many are suspecting that this is being done just in case schools close down after the festive season given the surge of COVID-19 cases. With their books with them, students would transition easier to online learning methods should the directive be issued.

This was however met with some criticism by parents, who expressed that online education impacted the mental health of children, and some parents, quite negatively. Some parents also suspected a ‘hidden directive’ which is preempting a closing of schools.

Teachers and educators replied on such post expressing these concerns, revealing that there aren’t any directives incentivising them to send kids back with their books. However, nothing is wrong with taking the precaution, they expressed, given the insecurity caused by the pandemic.

Both parents and teachers seem equally divided about such a matter. One teacher said that they encouraged students to take their files home so they can revise their work.

Teachers also expressed how teaching in person is much more favourable to teaching online in the same way parents prefer their kids going to school in person.

#MaltaDaily

111 COVID helpline overwhelmed with calls leaving many waiting to book tests

Dec 22 2021

The COVID-19 111 helpline is reportedly experiencing an overwhelming amount of calls to book a swab test, with many reporting waiting up to 30 minutes to do so.

With appointments applicable either by calling the helpline or by registering online and the receiving a call to set the date, this newsroom attempted to call the helpline and confirmed the allegations to be true.

Further reports state that people with symptoms are being prioritised, meaning that booking tests before travelling during the holidays are being delayed.

This also implies that anyone booking a last-minute test would have to resort to the private sector, with rapid tests costing around €35 and PCR tests around €125.

Others took to social media to reveal that despite being told a call will be made after 24 hours, none whatsoever were actually made. A person posting to Facebook also said that calls are being declined upon phoning.

Malta currently has 2505 active cases, with 40 patients currently being treated at Mater Dei. The surge has prompted organisations such as the MUMN to call for stricter measures to control the spike.

#MaltaDaily