Members of the Malta Developers Association have organised a petition to try convince their long-standing president, Sandro Chetcuti, to stay at the helm of the lobby group.

During the MDA’s annual general meeting earlier this year, Mr Chetcuti said this was his last year at the MDA as he had decided to move on.

Mr Chetcuti told members that after 10 years as MDA president it was time for the association to find a replacement.

However, as the industry has started to slow following years of impressive growth, members of the MDA are urging Mr Chetcuti to reverse his decision.

“His (Chetcuti’s) departure would come at a bad time for the industry and we really need him to stay on. Due to the current political turmoil and uncertainty, our industry will be facing serious challenges in the coming months and we need someone strong at the helm,” a member of the council told The Sunday Times of Malta.

When contacted, the secretary of the MDA, Michael Stivala, admitted that Mr Chetcuti has repeated his intention to step down from the association during a number of council meetings.

Mr Chetcuti did not wish to comment, when contacted, but said intends to step down.

Perceived by many as being too close to the Labour government, Mr Chetcuti has become synonymous with the construction industry.

For environmentalists, he is the representative of greedy developers who ruined the island, while pro-business lobbyists feel he boosted the industry.

Construction industry sources are considering 2020 as a very challenging year. “During the latter part of 2019 and before all the trouble started, the construction business was already feeling the pinch.

The construction industry is believed to account for around 14 per cent of all economic activity generated on the island.