Alternattiva Demokratika is asking for the protection of the President to ensure that the big parties’ “illegally collected information” on voters was not utilised to the detriment of the Maltese citizen and the democratic process in the European Parliament elections next June.

Speaking during a visit to President Eddie Fenech Adami to give him the New Year’s greetings this morning, AD chairman Arnold Cassola also spoke on the election of a new President this year.

AD, he said, shall be meeting Opposition leader Joseph Muscat to propose for President a Maltese national who enjoys the support of all the Maltese and was also widely respected in the international community.

Unfortunately, he said, the Prime Minister refused to meet AD on the issue, citing constitutional grounds as a reason.

The AD delegation also visited Archbishop Paul Cremona. AD secretary general Victor Galea expressed AD’s concern with the state of the family in Malta and said the party was asking the Maltese government to introduce social and economic measures to strengthen the family structure and encourage new births.

Prof. Cassola expressed AD’s appreciation at the Vatican’s correction of its original statements on the criminalisation of gays. However, he said, it was quite concerned at his statement that behaviour beyond traditional heterosexual relations was "a destruction of God's work".