Jean Pierre Debono, a close aide of Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia, has resigned as the party's chief political coordinator.
Mr Debono said he wanted to focus on his “new job in the private sector” and his candidature for the next general election.
A key figure in Dr Delia’s leadership campaign, Mr Debono had even relinquished his parliamentary seat in on order for the newly-elected leader to be co-opted in Parliament in September 2017.
The outgoing political coordinator, announced the decision on his Facebook account on Wednesday morning in which he uploaded his resignation letter, which he handed personally to Dr Delia in a meeting held last Monday, on Budget Day.
Debono pledges his loyalty to party and leader
Asked about the fact that his departure would be perceived as a blow to Dr Delia, Mr Debono told Times of Malta that his resignation was in no way linked to any sort of disagreement and he pledged his loyalty to party and leader.
“I had been thinking for months about whether to take up an opportunity in the private sector, and after a lot of thought I decided it was the right time to move on,” he said.
Having joined the Nationalist Party radio station in 1998, Mr Debono rose through the party ranks and occupied the post of assistant secretary general and chief political coordinator among others.
Mr Debono also served as an MP for three months after being elected from the seventh electoral district in the 2017 general election, but relinquished his seat in order for PN leader Adrian Delia to be co-opted in Parliament.
'Stepping aside to make way for new blood'
In his resignation letter, Mr Debono said he was "stepping aside to make way for new blood" and focus on his district campaign. He added that he was making himself available to the party, to ensure a smooth transition, once his successor would be appointed. The post is not electable, meaning that the decision rests solely on Dr Delia.
Though he was set to be co-opted to parliament last June, after Gozitan MP David Stellini relinquished his seat, he was forced to back down following allegations of vote manipulation.
In September 2017, Mr Debono had been warned by the party's Administrative Council over the handling of proxy votes in the leadership election, in which Dr Delia defeated Chris Said by 800 votes, out of 15,000 paid-up members who took part.
The investigation had been launched amid claims that Mr Debono had collected several voting documents through a proxy issued without consent. Though, Mr Debono had apologised, he denied any wrongdoing.