Opposition leader Bernard Grech is to nominate Karl Gouder and Lorenzo Vella for the Gieħ ir-Repubblika award in appreciation of their work for the country.

Grech announced his idea on Monday evening while speaking on Net Television.

Gouder, a former Nationalist MP and chief operating officer at PN headquarters, died last week aged 45, days after announcing his intention to run for election as PN general secretary.

Lorenzo Vella, 43, was a former Labour Party activist who died in August while serving as head of EU representation in Malta.

Grech said the country needed to recognise those who like Gouder and Vella, loved their country and worked for its people through their different fields.

Gieħ ir-Repubblika is Malta’s highest honour and comes in various grades. The awards are announced on Republic Day.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.