Former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has come out in favour of a public inquiry into the death of Jean Paul Sofia but said it should take place following the magisterial inquiry conclusions. 

His comments come hours before a vigil to support Sofia’s family at Castille and as Labour MPs are due to meet for an urgent parliamentary group meeting on Monday.

Muscat described Prime Minister Robert Abela’s stand on the issue as “technically correct and legally sound”.

“I believe however that after allowing the magisterial inquiry to take its course and following its conclusion, there should be a public inquiry,” he told Times of Malta. 

Sofia, 20, died when a building under construction collapsed in Corradino in December last year. 

Since then, Sofia’s mother, Isabelle Bonnici has been insisting that an independent public inquiry should be held, yet Labour MPs last week defeated an opposition motion pushing for it. 

Prime Minister Robert Abela has continued to shoot down calls for a public inquiry and pledged to publish the conclusions of the magisterial inquiry. However, earlier on Monday, the magistrate leading that inquiry requested yet another extension to conclude her report.

Muscat believes that the public inquiry should not be limited to looking into Sofia’s death.

“Rather its remit needs to be widened to look into all the deaths in the construction industry over the years and establish responsibilities. Mohammed Alkhateeb and others are entitled to justice as much as anyone else.”

Mohammed Kasem Hashem Alkhateeb, 26, is Malta’s recent construction site victim, who died four days after falling at a construction site near Rabat. 

In 2015, at the age of 17, he fled the civil war in Syria alone and had come to Malta. 

When asked if Muscat will be attending tonight's vigil, he said he is currently abroad. 

"I believe that such events are not intended for politicians to hijack, but rather should be left to reflect their true meaning," he concluded.

Tonight's vigil has been endorsed by a number of high-profile individuals, including politicians, activists and NGOs. 

Former President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca is one of the many people who endorsed the vigil.

She said that as "true socialists" she and her husband, Edgar, believe that "we should always stand for workers' rights and for those who are disadvantaged in society".

Meanwhile, another former general secretary of the Labour Party, Jason Micallef said that he will not be attending tonight's vigil. 

He said there were other people who used any reason to protest against the government of the day. He attached pictures of posts where NGOs Repubblika and Occupy Justice, urge people to attend the vigil.

"Tonight, because of such people, I will not attend the protest," he wrote on Facebook on Monday.

MDA does not object to a public inquiry 

Replying to questions, the Malta Developers’ Association president, Michael Stivala, said that the association does not have any objections to a public inquiry being held. 

He said the association offers its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Sofia.

"We would like to emphasise, that none of our members are involved in this case," Stivala said.

"We believe that it is important to have a transparent, accountable, and rapid process in place to investigate this tragedy and any tragedy in all places of work."

He added that the public inquiry should review any deficiencies in the whole system, including bureaucratic processes and serious delays.