New St Paul’s Bay councillor resigns days after getting elected through casual election

St Paul’s Bay councillor Charles Cassar, who was elected through casual election just last week, has submitted his resignation from the council.

Speaking to MaltaToday, St Paul’s Bay mayor Censu Galea confirmed Cassar sent his letter of resignation to the council on Tuesday evening.

Cassar was elected on the Labour ticket through casual election following the resignation of councillor Alfred Grima. Hours later, he sent a letter to the council secretary declaring he would be serving in the post as independent councillor.

However, Labour Party deputy leader Alex Agius Saliba told MaltaToday that it was the party that asked Cassar to resign given that he was handed down a suspended sentence last August on several criminal charges.

The party could not stop Cassar from contesting the casual election since this is a decision the individual takes.

Speaking to MaltaToday, Censu Galea said no particular reason was cited in Cassar’s resignation letter.

His resignation now means a new councillor will need to be elected through a co-option. MaltaToday is informed the individual which is set to replace Cassar had contested the 2024 local council election, but did not contest the casual election.

Charles Cassar had contested the casual election following the resignation of Alfred Grima, who had cited a “serious lack of good governance” as the reason for him to step down.

In his letter, he singled out the mayor’s disparaging and tribalistic attitude. “A lack of transparency, breach of regulations, and misinformation is now the order of the day,” he complained.

Grima referred to a recent decision by the council leaders to prevent a discussion on two special resolutions brought forward by five councillors. He described this is an attempt to silence the councillors and prevent them from exercising their obligations in the interest of the locality.