Some of the memorial plaques removed from the Mellieħa cemetery without warning will be put back in place once repair works are concluded, Health Minister Chris Fearne said. 

Last week, Times of Malta reported that family members were upset when they visited the Mellieħa graveyard to pay respects to their deceased family members to find that the 20 or so plaques that had adorned the wall had been taken down. They were left on the ground, some broken.

Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Fearne said that even though the plaques had been put in place without the required authorisation, their removal could have been done in a more dignified and sensitive manner.

Replying to a parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Robert Cutajar, Fearne said he was informed the plaques were removed because urgent repairs were needed and they were posing a danger.

“I already asked that once works, which will start in the coming weeks, are concluded, some of the plaques should be put back on the wall,” he said. 

He said that the management of the cemetery had tried to contact the families but had found it difficult to do so as some of the plaques had been there for years.