Enrique Iglesias was yesterday presented with an honorary citizenship of Valletta by mayor Paul Borg Olivier.

Enrique, who openly professes to be besotted with Malta and the Maltese and thinks the Maltese Islands are “absolutely amazing”, received the citizenship certificate and commemorative gift in a brief ceremony held at the Grand Hotel Excelsior.

Just before his exit to perform at the Isle of MTV, Malta Special, the Valletta Mayor, the Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Mario De Marco and Permanent Secretary Peter Portelli chatted briefly with Enrique, who also found the time to sign autographs and pose for photos with fans who turned up at the hotel in the hope of meeting him.

Enrique Iglesias is only the second foreign personality to receive this honour, the first having been Maestro Riccardo Muti last year. Dr Borg Olivier, stated that the Valletta council thought that since Enrique is so in love with Malta it would be worthy of honouring him in this way, and also because he is a symbol of bringing people together from all over the world through the common language of music. Enrique expressed his gratitude and said that he was honoured to receive the honorary Valletta citizenship as stated below.