The family of a mother who was buried underneath the rubble of her own home after a construction accident in March of last year have been left in limbo.

Miriam Pace’s death had caused public uproar after construction works adjacent to her home led to the collapse of her home in Ħamrun. 

Every month since then, Carmel Pace has been taking to social media on a monthly basis to post tributes to his deceased wife as well as to question what authorities have done to remedy the situation.

“My dear, we’ve begun a new year. Rather than being gathered around a table, I’ve come to visit your grave instead, just so I can talk to you for a bit,” Carmelo’s most recent post reads.

Carmel expressed his concerns that now that public outrage has subsided, his wife’s death will be “swept under the carpet.”

“During the third month of last year, the unexpected happened - a tragedy that lit up our country in outrage, when your life came to an abrupt end in your own home just so someone else could shore up profits,” he wrote.

“That fiery anger that lit up Malta is now faltering, because it seems that many want this heartbreaking tragedy to be forgotten,” Carmel added.

Since Miriam Pace’s death, there has been an ongoing court case involving two architects, the contractor and the construction worker who were involved.

”Why does nobody know the contents of the report that was supposed to be finished by four government-appointed experts?

Why are the authorities unwilling to launch a public inquiry to see whether there were any shortcomings in institutions related to the construction industry so as to avoid the death of a person?” Carmel’s post reads.

Carmel emphasised how he at least had hoped that his wife’s death would result in efforts to make sure that “the household becomes a safe shelter for every citizen.”

Prime Minister Robert Abela had immediately announced a second reform in as many years for the construction industry. The report drafted by that reform commission has yet to see the light of day. 

Architects had proposed a sprawling reform of the sector last summer, while NGO Moviment Graffitti had presented its own proposals to reform the construction industry in October. 

A protest that was organized as a reaction to the death of Miriam Pace. Photo: Facebook

Contractors at the construction site adjacent to the Pace family home that collapsed tried in December to move machinery and resume construction works on the site in question.

That bid was blocked by the court, which said all such requests would be turned down until the criminal case concerning Miriam Pace's death was concluded.

“You can repair a truck but you cannot repair a person’s life,” magistrate Joe Mifsud had said.

Questions on the contents of the report which was supposed to lead to the promised construction reform bill, along with separate questions on the status of the bill itself and why the public inquiry has not been launched, have been sent to the office of the prime minister.

The questions remain unanswered at the time of writing.