Newly-elected Gzira councillor misses swearing in because council building lift was not working

Aug 27 2022

Investigations are currently under way by the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability after newly-elected PN Gzira councillor Mario Azzopardi was forced to miss a council meeting and his swearing in because the council building’s lift was not working.

The CRPD has since requested the council to provide detailed feedback on the incident and the actions which are going to be taken to address it, including plan of action and set of time frames.

The PN has also called discrimination against councillor Mario Azzopardi, with PN councillors revealing that the lift had been out of order for a while with no efforts made to fix it.

In light of this, commissioner Samantha Pace Gasan stated: “All Local Council premises and online platforms should be rendered accessible. This ensures that persons with disability can both participate on a political level in their localities, but also access services provided by the Local Councils.”

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Hamrun council in talks with Syrian community to decrease incidents following mass brawl

Aug 27 2022

Following the recent mass brawl in Hamrun and the social media coverage that followed, the village’s local council has agreed to collaborate with members of the Syrian community and work towards reach an agreement that will hopefully decrease the amount of such incidents.

Hamrun mayor Christian Sammut and Syrian Solidarity NGO president Taleb Zaidan met on Friday to discuss potential ways of collaboration, with Zaidan reporting that the NGO called in those involved in the mass brawl to let them know that their behaviour reflected badly on Malta’s entire Syrian community.

Following the incident, multiple members of the community volunteered to aid in regeneration works such as plastering, painting and planting trees across Hamrun in a show of solidarity.

Sammut stated that Syrians are good people and respect must be granted across the board while Zaidan highlighted how not all Syrians are bad and the behaviour of some should not reflect on the entire community.

Syria has been engaged in civil conflict since 2011, causing the forced displacement of millions, with the number of Syrians in Malta increasing from a few hundreds to around 6,500 since it first broke out.

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Maltese eager to travel as 36,514 passports issued during first half of 2022

Maltese eager as ever to travel as 36,514 passports issued during first half of 2022

Aug 26 2022

The amount of Maltese people applying for a passport during the first half of 2022 almost reached pre-pandemic levels, Identity Malta has revealed.

Telling ONE News, Identity Malta highlighted that over 36,000 passports were issued from their Marsa offices, with the pre-pandemic 2019 figures exceeding 43,000.

The figures revealed in 2022 show that more and more people are going abroad after two years of restraint, with recent weeks taking a heavy toll on Identity Malta’s operations due to a sharp increase in demand.

Head of Identity Malta’s Passport Office Joanne Caruana expressed that the organisation took immediate action when noting the increase in demand.

For more information, or to apply for a passport yourself, you can visit www.identitymalta.com.

Have you travelled this year?

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WATCH: Robert Abela optimistic about the future despite national concerns

Aug 26 2022

In a recent interview on ONE Radio, Robert Abela discussed some of Malta’s current issues & concerns and how he and his government are approaching them.

Describing the government’s style of work in the face of national obstacles, Abela stated that the government operates by identifying obstacles and working towards solutions with wisdom, responsibility and sustainability.

Addressing concerns of economic collapse, Abela compared Malta’s post-pandemic performance to its performance nowadays, stating; “Statistics and facts fill you with courage.” He went on to reveal that the government plans on stepping up discussions and preparation ahead of this year’s budget to keep the country moving forward and sustain its rhythm.

“My message is definitely one of positivity and that Malta will see good times,”

“My message is definitely one of positivity and that Malta will see good times,” the PM said before going on to address a number of other issues the country is facing.

Discussing the Russia’s attacks on Ukraine and the consequent effects on the rest of the world, Abela stated that Malta is less affected than others due to a number of factors such as geographic position before going on to address the economy and tourism.

In a Facebook post published after the interview, Abela stated that the touristic recovery is something which sustains their faith to “remain a government with acts with responsibility and sustainability in the people’s favour because the economy is strong.”

Do you agree with Abela?

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