Isabelle Bonnici is holding a vigil for her son Jean Paul Sofia on Monday as she and her family reiterate their call for a public inquiry into the construction death of the 20-year-old. 

She urged those attending the vigil, being held in front of Auberge de Castille at 8pm, to bring a candle.

"Those that support our call for a public inquiry that facilitates safer workplaces and a more just Malta should attend," Bonnici said in a Facebook post.

"Between 2018 and 2022, 29 workers died on construction sites, including my son. Isn't this enough?" Bonnici asked.

The vigil comes after government MPs shot down a parliamentary motion calling for a public inquiry on Wednesday

Instead, prime minister Robert Abela and Labour MPs called for a speedy conclusion of the ongoing magisterial inquiry into the tragedy. 

On Thursday, Abela pledged he would publish the magisterial inquiry's results. 

Sofia died in December when a Corradino construction site collapsed while he was in it. The site was built on government land and was leased to a Lands Authority official. 

Since then, Sofia's family, particularly his mother, have been calling for a public inquiry into the young man's death. 

Several civil society organisations have already backed the vigil, including Moviment Graffitti and Repubblika. 

"You cannot be a mother or father worthy of that name and not support Bonnici's call for a public inquiry into her son's death," Repubblika president Robert Aquilina said.

Andre Callus of Moviment Graffitti said that a public inquiry is needed to address systematic failings in the construction industry. 

"We want justice for all construction victims and the entire population, but the government is refusing this," he said. 

The Nationalist Party has also encouraged people to attend Monday's vigil.

Bonnici said that PL supporters have expressed support for her cause.

"There are no colours in this issue, only the colour of love," she said.  

Bonnici said she felt disappointed in PL MPs who expressed their support for a public inquiry in private but still voted according to party lines on Wednesday.

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