Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri’s resignation is among the essential steps to begin rebuilding anew the faith in Malta’s identification system, Nationalist Party Leader Bernard Grech said while speaking on NET FM on Thursday.

Grech said that Camilleri is responsible for the alleged racket of fraudulent identity cards having been issued from Identita, referring to allegations brought forward by lawyer Jason Azzopardi, who says that the government agency is involved in the distribution of 18,000 false IDs. Azzopardi called for a magisterial inquiry to be opened concerning these reports, and the duty magistrate upheld this request, the lawyer had revealed on the 13 August.

“We need to do more,” Grech commented, “because as the party in Opposition, we are aspiring to lead this country in a better way. We want to assist with this inquiry.” He said that the PN is appealing for anyone who has received a letter addressed to someone registered on their address to bring such information forward. “We want to assist in getting this information to the magistrate,” he said, urging people with such information to contact the PN directly or to reach out to Members of Parliament that they trust. “It is important that we do not allow this alleged fraud to continue happening. Help our country,” he said.

“This situation should not be allowed to happen again. We need to establish a verification process which allows people to see who is registered on their property.” He also reiterated the PN’s calls for Identita to publish their internal inquiry, “so that people can see what actions were taken by Identity Malta once it became aware of this fraud.”

Grech spoke of issues pertaining to security, the environment, infrastructure, as well as domestic violence, referring to the murder of Nicolette Ghirxi, who was killed on 11 August by a man she had formerly been in a relationship with. He remarked that the government has “failed this sector”.

The Opposition Leader added that Camilleri is also responsible for the Commissioner of Police, whose position he commented was renewed despite ongoing issues in that regard. “Camilleri should shoulder the political responsibility for the failure of Identity Malta,” Grech remarked. “Now there might be a sense of doubt when someone presents an identity card, imagine that.”

He said that it is “evident without a doubt” how Minister Camilleri has “failed in everything that falls under him”.

“We cannot stop insisting on Camilleri’s resignation,” he commented. “This country needs leadership which prioritises the interests of citizens and puts good governance at the forefront.”

Speaking further on the issue of domestic violence, the PN Leader said that “they cannot keep ignoring this responsibility”. He continued that when Bernice Cassar was killed on the 22nd of November, 2022, “Measures should have been taken to prevent such a thing from happening again.”

Grech said that the government is not prioritising people’s safety, and he remarked that in this case, he is speaking about women who are vulnerable. He added that Camilleri did not speak up even after Ghirxi’s murder. “We want to reveal the truth that the government and the minister are trying to hide.”

The Opposition Leader said that every woman should be able to seek out support and be provided with real support. He added that police should have an intensified focus of resources in this regard. “Steps need to be taken concretely and as quickly as possible.”

He said that he supports the Ghirxi family’s request for an independent inquiry “so that we can see what shortcomings there were”.

“We need to learn from this and work to prevent such a situation from happening again. I am passionate because the government does not understand the gravity of the situation. We need to maintain the pressure and show a way forward,” he concluded.