Corradino Correctional Facility has become a suicidal facility rather than a correctional facility under the current management, the Nationalist Party said on Monday.

The reporting of another suicide attempt by a prisoner – the second in two months – has the Opposition calling for Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri to shoulder political responsibility over the current prison situation.

“The prison system is in a state of total collapse, and instead of having people reform themselves in prison, people end up ending their life prematurely”, PN spokesperson Beppe Fenech Adami said.

Fenech Adami spoke of the irresponsible way in which the prison is being run: “the situation is evident but the prison director [Alex Dalli] is constantly insisting on continuing to run Corradino as he wants to”, he said.

Twelve prisoners have died in Corradino in the past three years and Fenech Adami said that “the precarious situation the prison systems currently is even more worrying considering the fact that Minister Byron Camilleri is insistent on defending Colonel Dalli and his role as prison director.”

“Byron Camilleri is defending what is manifestly wrong. He is defending a system charged with taking people’s lives”, Fenech Adami said.

PN candidate Darren Carabott spoke about the new board which was set up by the government in order to investigate prisoner proceedings at Corradino Correctional Facility.

One of the members on the board of inquiry is Janice Formosa Pace. Formosa Pace resigned from the board of governance of the prison in order to be able to form part of the board of inquiry.

Carabott asked “how is it even possible that a person who occupied a managerial role in prison, now resigns in order to form part of an inquiry into the public system.”

 “We need a correctional facility and not a suicidal one”, Carabott said.

PN candidate Graziella Galea said that the Opposition has pushed forward numerous proposals in order to change the prison system.

The proposals include the extension of prison facilities, reintegration programs for prisoners as well as better facilities such as electronic tagging amongst others.