PN petitioners claim Delia confidence vote question has changed completely

Former PN executive president says executive committee has been misguided since wording for the leadership vote question has been changed from the one proposed in their petition

10 July 2019, 2:33pm
by Karl Azzopardi

2 min read

Adrian Delia will be submitting his leadership to a confidence vote

The question which will be asked to the PN General Council members regarding Adrian Delia's leadership has been amended from the original wording in the petition, it is being claimed.

In a letter sent to the party's executive president Alex Perici Calascione, the petition said that the General Council will on 27 July be voting on a question which has been "completely changed".

The letter was sent by former PN election candidate Ivan Bartolo, former executive president Mark Anthony Sammut, MZPN secretary general Emma Portelli Bonnici, vice-president of the party's professionals' forum Martin Musumeci, and councillor Emvin Bartolo.

They are insisting that it is unacceptable that the PN executive committee be "misguided" in such a manner.

“This continues to strengthen the doubts we have over the current party leadership,” they said.

The group are also complaining that secretary-ceneral Clyde Puli is insisting that all communication with councillors is carried out by the electoral commission or the party. “Those who forwarded their request for the General Council to be carried out have no access to who makes up the council in order to clarify their position on the issue,” they said.

They said the list of councillors eligible to vote on the 27 July had been "frozen" on the date Delia called the general council - 4 July - rather than on the date the petition was submitted. “We are informed that in the period between the two dates, there have been internal manoeuvres, with instructions from the sectional committees for people who are eligible to vote to be changed.”

The letter concluded by stating that the vote will not be a fair one, and is not based on transparency and honesty. “This is unacceptable and goes against the fundamental principles of the Nationalist Party. We are asking that action is taken and an urgent executive meeting is called in order for these divergences to be discussed.”

Karl Azzopardi is Online Editor and an IGM press awards (Human Stories) winner of 2019