The PN took its calls for the resignation of three ministers to the Labour Party’s headquarters on Wednesday, holding a press conference outside the building to insist that political responsibility must be shouldered for Jean Paul Sofia’s death.
Sofia, 20, died in 2022 when a Corradino building collapsed while under construction.
A public inquiry into the death found that the construction site was unregulated and ultimately found the state responsible for allowing that situation.
Last week, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech called on Prime Minister Robert Abela as well as ministers Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi, Silvio Schembri and Miriam Dalli to resign.
Zrinzo Azzopardi was responsible for the construction industry when the incident occurred, while Dalli and Schembri were responsible for INDIS and Malta Enterprise.
The PN has also said it intends to file a no-confidence motion in the three ministers.
PN MP Jerome Caruana Cilia said that the government had already acted unconscionably towards Sofia’s family and it was shameful that it continued to resist calls for political responsibility to be shouldered.
“Ministers have resigned for far less, Godfrey Farrugia was out because of a tent set up next to Mater Dei, Manuel Mallia took the fall for his driver and former PL deputy leader Anġlu Farrugia had to resign because of some comments he made,” he said.
“But then for a case like this, where a young man was left buried under the rubble, no one is going to be held responsible?”
PN MP Stanley Zammit said that as Planning Minister, Zrinzo Azzopardi was responsible for keeping the industry regulated and up to date, but by choosing not to have a clear picture of the industry he was minister of, he had failed dramatically.
The inquiry confirmed that systematic failures, regulatory shortcomings and a weakness in administrative systems had allowed abuse to flourish.
Zrinzo Azzopardi has also dragged his feet on reforms, leaving the introduction of new building codes and mandatory skills cards on the shelf or introducing only half measures such as the contractors' licence.
“The minister never went for the root of the problem, he failed to make order from the disorder and it’s no excuse that these problems were long in the making,” he said.
PN MP Ivan Castillo said that the public inquiry showed a terrifying reality - that workers in Malta could not rely on the authorities to ensure their health and safety on the job.
This, coupled with an alarming increase in deaths and severe injuries was unacceptable, he said.
Echoing the inquiry’s sentiment that it was useless to pass laws when there was no one to enforce them, Castillo said it was ridiculous that with such a sprawling public sector, adequate enforcement staff could not be found.
Political responsibility for all of these shortcomings must be shouldered by the government, he insisted