Neville Gafà, the controversial official who worked in the Office of the Prime Minister, has quit and will not be re-appointed.

Mr Gafà resigned as a 'position of trust' on Tuesday morning, Times of Malta can reveal, and sources say he is not expected to take up any government position in the future.

It is understood Prime Minister Robert Abela was not happy that Mr Gafà was among the staff who attended his swearing-in ceremony on Monday.

His resignation was handed in to Clyde Caruana, the new chief of staff.

While it is usual practice for officials to resign their positions after a change of prime minister, it is understood Mr Gafà feared he would not be reappointed. 

The once-mystery OPM official was mired in controversy during Joseph Muscat's administration and is a close confidante of Keith Schembri, who is being investigated over the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

Mr Gafà was alleged to have been involvement in an alleged visa fraud racket and admitted to meeting with a Libyan militia leader during a visit to Tripoli.

It took Dr Muscat over seven months to explain to the public the exact nature of Mr Gafà's role. 

Mr Gafà had previously been sacked by Labour leadership contender Chris Fearne. 

In the early hours of Sunday, as it became clear that Dr Abela was likely to win the leadership election, Mr Gafà published a one-word Facebook post predicting "continuity".

However, by Tuesday morning, sources say the official began asking whether his job was safe and within hours had handed in his resignation.