Joseph Scerri, a 93-year old St Vincent De Paul resident, has been nominated for a Ġieħ ir-Repubblika award for his battle against the state care home over new rules described as an "encroachment on [his] personal liberty”.

Scerri's nomination for the award was signed by a group of 26 citizens and presented by independent politician and activist Arnold Cassola. 

In their nomination, the group described Scerri as a "living example of active aging" and "a role model for his and younger generations, as well as for all Maltese citizens".

"He has show us all that when one is being abused and deprived of his/her basic rights, one should not be passive and accept fatalistically the decisions of higher powers," the group said.

"One must first question and then react in all legal, peaceful and non-violent ways available against any attempt at depriving persons of their basic liberties and rights. Mr Scerri has show us what dignity and self-respect really mean."

Scerri lodged a formal complaint with the St Vincent De Paul Residence management over the introduction of new rules that ban unaccompanied residents from leaving their wards after an elderly man went missing from the facility last month.

“It seems [you are] trying to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut and applying a ‘one size fits all’ procedure. This is unacceptable to me as you are restricting my freedom,” Scerri told the management in his complaint against the blanket decision.

The decision was part of a raft of new measures which were meant to step up security after the disappearance of an 83-year-old man from the home for the elderly a fortnight ago and an apparent suicide attempt by another resident a few days later.

In a memo sent to all staff, senior management said that,  to “escalate security” in all open wards, residents are not to be allowed out of their wards, or even outside to smoke a cigarette, unless accompanied by a carer, a nurse or a relative.

The nurses' union has described the new rules as "unacceptable" and "inhumane" and attempted to block the new rules with directives to its members.