Independent candidate Arnold Cassola has renewed a call to the President he made in November 2019 to strip former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of Ġieħ ir-Repubblika.

In his renewed call on Sunday, Cassola said his initial request had been motivated by the fact that Muscat had covered the behaviour of “his corrupt colleague” for months if not years.

He noted that no action has then been taken regarding his request.

Cassola said that following the developments in court on Saturday, he was renewing his call with more strength and urgency.

Cassola said there was now concrete proof of former chief of staff Keith Schembri’s corrupt behaviour, which “disgraced Prime Minister” Muscat had been covering, if not encouraging.

Malta, he said, was Sunday waking to ridicule the world over because of Schembri’s behaviour, "protected and nurtured" by Muscat.

The Maltese economy would take another fatal blow because of their, and others’, bad behaviour.

The country and the people should give the world a clear signal that they condemned what had been done, and another or national morality and ethics.

Stripping Muscat of his Ġieħ ir-Repubblika would be a sign that the country had turned over a new leaf, Cassola said, as he hoped his renewed request would not be ignored.