“Why should we lose a young man who would have made a fine priest just because he wanted to get married?” – Archbishop Charles Scicluna asserting that the Church should look into revising its rules to allow Catholic priests the option to get married, January 7.

 

“I have always believed that a lazy justice system is not good, but one that is too hasty is even worse” – Criminal lawyer Franco Debono, explaining that while he agreed with reforming the compilation of evidence stage in a court case, he did not agree with removing it completely, January 21.

 

“From the ashes of Gaza, thousands of fighters will rise and will continue the struggle” – Former Libyan Ambassador to Malta Saadun Suayeh on how Israel’s relentless bombing of Gaza will only serve to make the Palestinian resistance even stronger, January 21.

 

“They left to live in tents. But now, they have evacuated the tents too because these are also being targeted” – Palestinian student Nour Zaqout describing the plight of her family in Gaza whose home was targeted by Israeli missiles and burned down, January 28.

 

“I have nothing to hide” – Former Infrastructure Malta chief Frederick Azzopardi reacting to the news that an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office into the €40 million flyover project had zeroed in on him, January 28.

 

“How can one with a clear conscience, vote Labour?”  – Labour dissident Desmond Zammit Marmarà lambasting the Labour government for being complacent in the face of rampant corruption and unethical behaviour by Labour politicians, February 4.

 

“My hope was Malta. I invested my hope, energy and ambition in a country that called me home” – Kusi Dismark, shortly before he was sent back to Ghana by the authorities after 13 years in Malta, despite integrating well and setting up his own business, February 11.

 

“My life is kaput” – Emil Marinov, who survived a frenzied butcher’s knife attack at the hands of a man who went on to kill, insisting his attacker should have been jailed for life instead of being sentenced to 42 years after admitting to murder and attempted murder, March 10.

 

“Sometimes even the best palliative care leaves the patient in a lot of pain with no hope of surviving. In those circumstances I believe doctor-assisted dying is suitable and justified” – Health Minister Jo-Etienne Abela on the need for euthanasia in extreme cases, March 17.

 

“I spend the night praying for the sun to come up” – Ramona Vassallo, who is homeless, describing the dangers of sleeping on the streets, March 10.

 

“The prime minister has descended into his Super One comfort zone, putting party over country” – European Parliament President Roberta Metsola on how Robert Abela conducts his politics, May 26.

 

“We’re slowly losing the sense of what’s right and wrong” – President Myriam Spiteri Debono speaking about the country’s waning values, shortly after becoming the country’s head of state, April 7.

 

“I am in love with solitude. God is enough” – Mother Abbess Sr Maria Adeodata dei Marchesi Testaferrata De Noto, the last Benedictine nun at St Peter’s Monastery in Mdina, May 19.

 

“It’s like there is an ‘off’ button for each word and you have to switch them all back on” – Ryan Armaoui talks about trying to regain his speech after a stroke, May 26.

 

“Resilience. We had to go to hell and back to make this a success” – Entrepreneur Max Thake replying to a question about the secret to the success of peaq, a Blockchain-based technology he co-founded four years ago, which is now valued at a third of a billion dollars, June 9.

 

“I think that the people spoke out in a very strong way. They expect a change in the way things are done” – Finance Minister Clyde Caruana commenting on the European and local election results which saw major losses for Labour, June 30.

 

“Genetically we’re all like fourth cousins” – Immunologist Keith Sacco, who sees many patients with rare diseases, urging Malta to allow couples the option of free genetic testing to help prevent rare diseases that he believes are the result of generations of inbreeding, July 7.

 

“You have to be here for the right reasons; otherwise, you will make everyone miserable. It has to be genuine” – Roberta Huber, 36, a former IT programmer, who joined St Margaret’s Monastery in Cospicua as a postulant cloistered nun, July 28.

 

“I want to continue until the last minute, I hope I will be able to come to school up to the very, very, end” – La Sallian Brother Edward Galea, shortly before he turned 100, August 11.

 

“We need a vision, and older, high-end tourists who spend more” – MHRA president Tony Zahra on the need to change our tourism model, August 11.

 

“I have a permanent ache in my heart. There is a horrible vision which plays on in my mind. It is a vision I will carry with me forever, along with the terrible sadness that the face of a murderer was the last thing my son was ever to see” – Sandra Wild speaking on the fourth anniversary of the murder of her son Ivor Piotr Maciejowski and his partner Christian Pandolfino in their Sliema home, August 18.

 

“Generally, I do not communicate with the prime minister. Absolutely not” – Police Commissioner Angelo Gafà responding to a question about whether he ever faced interference from the Office of the Prime Minister, September 1.

 

“Social media is not real life… Now I find that I am reading more articles. I hope to pick up a book soon and my mind is clearer and much less bothered” – Pianist Gisèle Degiorgio who deleted all social media apps from her phone, September 15.

 

“Parties, especially Labour in government, have become reliant on corporate lobbyists for funding” – Left-wing socialist and former chairperson of the Drydocks Council Sammy Meilaq, September 15.

 

“Dom Mintoff achieved invaluable social progress at the price of national divisiveness, violence and glaring contempt for democracy” – Human rights lawyer and former judge at the European Court of Human Rights Vanni Bonello on the legacy of the former socialist prime minister, September 22.

 

“We are obsessed with cars, me included”– Transport Minister Chris Bonett speaking on the traffic situation in Malta, September 22.

 

“I think we are raising expectations, giving hope and creating spaces for people to be seen for who they are” – Angela Bettoni, the first MCAST BA graduate with Down’s syndrome, October 20.

 

 

“I was stripped of my dignity” – Charlotte Casha recalling how four armed and hooded police officers allegedly barged in on her while sleeping topless in what turned out to be a case of mistaken identity, November 10.

 

“World War III has started” – Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko telling the world to “wake up”, citing North Korean troops fighting alongside Russian forces and a surge of Iranian-made weapons fuelling the assault on his nation, November 24.

 

“It is impossible for us to work together with [Marine] Le Pen. For us, it's impossible to work with FPÖ [Freedom Party of Austria] or the AfD [Alternative for Germany]; they are neo-Nazis” – European People’s Party (EPP) president Manfred Weber stressing his group's resolve to only work with those that share the EPP’s values on key issues, November 24.

 

“Leaving the EU is an act of insanity” – Prime Minister Robert Abela reacting to a proposal that Malta should enshrine EU membership into the constitution, saying there was no need for such a constitutional change because “everyone” in Malta is in favour of the EU, December 1.

 

“As they arrived, people went to welcome them, but they ended up killing them all. I thought, if you’re willing to kill those who welcomed you, what would stop you from killing me?” – Maher Ibrahim, a Syrian who has lived in Malta since 2013, describing how he decided to flee his country after Assad’s soldiers entered his village and killed his fellow villagers, December 15.