Political parties should be forbidden from storing personal data on voters, ADPD leader Sandra Gauci said on Saturday as she called for reform to restore public confidence following a massive data leak.
“The storage and misuse of personal data is a serious concern that undermines the privacy and security of individuals across the country. The fact that this data was allegedly used to discriminate against individuals based on their political beliefs is a clear violation of their rights to freedom of expression and association,” Gauci said at a news conference outside Labour Party headquarers on Saturday morning.
The ADPD leader was referring to allegations that a massive dataset of all registered voters in Malta was used by the government to favour pro-Labour candidates applying for public sector jobs.
Data on 337,384 people including their names, addresses, ID details, phone numbers, and voting preferences were exposed in the 2020 leak. The database combined information held by the Labour Party with a dataset created by C-Planet Solutions, the IT firm that left the database exposed.
The database also included a ‘1’ or ‘2’ beside each voter. A ‘1’ indicated that the voter is considered a Labour supporter, while a ‘2’ indicated that the voter is inclined toward the Nationalist Party.
The Shift News has claimed, citing unnamed sources, that this information was used to favour Labour candidates for government jobs. C-Planet, which is owned by the brother-in-law of minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi, was subsequently fined €65,000 by the data protection commissioner for having failed to adequately secure the data.
ADPD leader Gauci called for further investigation by the data protection commissioner into political involvement in the leak and urged lawmakers to change the law to prohibit political parties from storing personal data on voters.
“We must hold those responsible for this scandal accountable for their actions as well. This includes not only those who directly participated in discriminatory practices but also those who enabled them,” she said.
ADPD deputy secretary general Melissa Bagley said the scandal was a threat to the very foundations of Maltese democracy.
“The government has a responsibility to ensure that our public services are staffed by individuals who are qualified and competent, regardless of their political affiliations. By engaging in discriminatory practices, the government undermines the integrity of our public service recruitment processes,” she said.
The government’s silence was concerning, she added, with the lack of transparency and accountability only serving to further erode public trust in our institutions.