The contents of this article will, I am sure, neither add anything new to what you already know or have gathered in these past days, nor will they be sufficient to enhance the merits that the late Mary Fenech Adami so rightly deserves.

I will make an attempt to list those qualities she possessed, those that struck me. She possessed talents which are very difficult to find in any one person. She held unique capabilities – she would understand and show compassion. She was a good listener and made valid contributions to society.

Remarkably, in this country where everyone knows everyone, I have not come across anyone who had despised her. On the contrary, she was widely praised, not only in her adopted hometown of Birkirkara, but also across the Maltese Islands.

Anyone who doubts the wisdom and works of St Thomas of Aquinas will certainly change his opinion on encountering the bond that existed between Mary and her husband Eddie Fenech Adami. In his Summa, he says that each person is created to serve a specific scope in life and that if a person is destined for marriage, the Creator would have created the perfect partner for such person. The marriage of Mary and Eddie was exemplary to all. They practised their Catholic beliefs among the people. During the course of their public and family lives they experienced several difficulties of different levels and with diverse intensity, but despite these struggles and obstacles, they remained steadfast.

The political and public life as Eddie’s wife, first as Opposition Leader, then as Prime Minister and later as President of the Republic did not make her life easy, being always, as she was, in the public eye. Day in, day out, they attended to the needs, requests, moods, harsh and sweet talk of those who exerted pressure on them either over the telephone or during the course of their visits.

Public life is far from an easy task. It increases the weight of the cross that we have to carry. It dictates your daily life and restricts your personal liberties and activities. However, despite these difficulties and the thoughtless attitude of some, Mrs Fenech Adami carried on with her life which she held in inner peace and harmony – through thick and thin.

Despite the fact that a number of persons had entered her home, beat her, chased her children and destroyed everything they could get hold of, she did not change. And many, as myself do, consider this an incredible feat. Her characteristics remained unchanged – her gentleness, her willingness to provide good advice and her readiness to assist.

The events that took place on that particular day were apocalyptic. The way in which the Fenech Adami family had reacted to those incidents was extraordinary. Equally incongruent, however, was how the government at that time maintained its silence. Condemnations were not issued, nor criminal proceedings instituted. It was as though nothing had happened. Instead of expressing anger or abandoning her husband and his political mission, she remained at his side, equally prepared and holding her ground.

The sheer fact that following these incidents she continued to go out daily to church, to shop, to chat and to greet people, provided sufficient evidence. This behaviour was a clear declaration that, no matter what, the Fenech Adami family was there to stay – in Birkirkara. The village that she loved so much and that she refused to leave, despite being married to the President. By the time I was elected a member of Parliament I had already met her a few times. She always wanted to talk and was eager to learn.

She would ask, and in turn, reply to your questions. Her mind was focused and nothing would escape her. She followed conversations discreetly. She used to read, understand and at the same time keep herself au courant. She was capable of delivering more than one message precisely because she was neither biased nor prejudiced.

I know of several persons from all corners of the island who used to phone her directly at her residence. She spoke to everyone and would keep them in their place. She maintained her beliefs. She would not budge. On the contrary, she would convince each person of those important elements in a fashion that every person coming from the northern part of the island is capable of doing. Kind hearted and well prepared, very active, expressing ideas founded on Catholic roots that were the basis on which she was brought up and on which she raised her children.

The Fenech Adami family is loved by one and all. No one can deny the goodwill it has created and generated. No one can deny that Mary Fenech Adami was behind this success. It was she who steered the ship. She was the woman who knew how to adapt to every situation. She was capable of living, understanding and facing everyone with dignity. A woman with qualties that exceed those of each person in our society whose role will be appraised in the future. As John Paul II (her favourite Pope) once said: “History is written almost exclusively as the narrative of man’s achievements, when in fact its better part is often moulded by women’s determined and persevering action for good”.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici is Justice and Home Affairs Minister