I am not resigning; I will continue working hard, and showing that I did not disappear by supporting all those in the elderly sector, Parliamentary Secretary for Active Ageing and Persons with Disability Silvio Parnis said in Parliament.

During an adjournment speech in Parliament on Monday, Parnis – under whose remit the care for the elderly falls – explained that he will not be resigning, despite the numerous criticism he has received over the deaths in elderly homes.

Over 20 people died from Covid-19 throughout September as the virus hit homes for the elderly, with many criticising Parnis for being silent – save for his gift of a roly-poly cake to residents of homes – on the matter.  In his maiden speech as PN leader on Sunday, Bernard Grech called for responsibility in this field to be shouldered.

However, Parnis told journalists outside Parliament that he would not be resigning but did not answer further questions, saying that he would explain things clearly in his adjournment speech.

“This is not about resigning. Today, I will have the adjournment speech and I will explain exactly what we did. But I do not think those who said certain figures were right”, he said.

Pressed and asked how he does not think he is responsible for these deaths, he said he is responsible for all the Maltese and Gozitan people. “That is why I was elected. Later on, I will speak in my adjournment and I invite you to understand what we are doing and after that change your version.”  

Throughout his speech however –which sometimes dipped into the surreal – Parnis had no qualms in throwing one dig after another at the Nationalist Party and newly elected leader Bernard Grech.

“You know who should resign? The person who is embarrassed to be Maltese should resign. That person, who had a family member who tested positive, and did not quarantine but instead broke quarantine rules. That person should resign”, Parnis said.

The statement is in reference to Bernard Grech himself, who said in a debate that he sometimes says that he is Greek when he is abroad, because the scandals brought about by the Labour party had made him embarrassed to say that he is Maltese.

The second part of Parnis’ statement is also in reference to Grech, with the implication being that Grech did not follow mandatory quarantine rules after his wife tested positive for Covid-19.  Grech however has since said that it was health authorities themselves who had told him that he did not need to follow a period of mandatory quarantine.

Parnis said that he realised that the Nationalist Party time and time again call for resignations of people in the government. “In front of me, I see all those individuals showing off their sainthood, and criticising me, saying that I have done nothing or not enough to protect the vulnerable in society.”

He said that since the pandemic started, the government has worked hard to ensure the safety of all those residence, workers and nurses who form part of elderly people homes.

“From the beginning we gave strict restrictive measures and protocols for homes to follow, where some workers and medical staff even lived in the residences. Those individuals followed the strict quarantine regulations, unlike others. The government was there to support those elderly who had no family support, and we set up numerous telephone lines for the elderly if they needed our support.”

He added that staff and residents were being tested regularly for the virus as well.

He repeatedly interspersed his speech with references to the ire (“hdura”) with which the Nationalist Party and its members had treated their now former leader Adrian Delia.

He mentioned that his ministry and the government are working on a number of new projects to improve the lives of those individuals living in residential homes. He mentioned a number of projects, such as working on new pharmacies for the elderly, providing more beds and even the opening of a restaurant at one particular elderly home as projects being worked on and in discussion.

 

“I will continue working, despite people saying that I have disappeared. It is important to remember that the pandemic is not a topic between the labour and nationalist party, but is something we need to work on collectively,” he said after he passed another comment on the Nationalist Party.

Video: Giuseppe Attard