NEWS | Wednesday, 29 October 2008

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Lija mayor elected president of PN’s councillors’ college

James Debono
Ian Castaldi Paris, the outspoken Lija mayor who led a successful campaign to stop the development of a four-storey building next to the Lija Belvedere tower, was elected president of the PN’s college of councillors on Monday.
Castaldi Paris was elected by the 15 members of the college who represent the PN’s local councillors. “This means a lot to me especially after what happened in Lija in the past months,” Castaldi Paris told MaltaToday.
Castaldi Paris has replaced former Pietà mayor Malcolm Mifsud, who served in this role since 2003 when he took over from Clyde Puli.
Mifsud explained to MaltaToday that he could not contest the election again because the party’s statute does not allow officials to serve more than three terms. He himself proposed Castaldi Paris for the post.
“It was a tough job for me but I enjoyed it even if the results were not always positive”, Mifsud said. “I am still interested in politics and in the future I will be interested in other roles in the party’s structure.”
A PN insider said that Castaldi Paris’s election showed the PN’s ability to co-opt ‘dissidents’ by giving them meaningful roles in the party.
The Lija mayor’s campaign on the Belvedere development was victorious when the Malta Environment and Planning Authority took an unprecedented step to revoke the permits and declare a buffer zone, limiting development in Transfiguration Avenue to two storeys.
Castaldi Paris openly clashed with the PN’s Siggiewi mayor Robert Musumeci, who was the architect of the project.
Top on Castaldi Paris’s agenda is ensuring a PN majority in the next round of local elections in June. In 2006 the MLP won the elections in the same batch of localities by 54% with the PN gaining only 43%. The PN will be facing difficult tests in localities like San Gwann and Pietà, where the PN it lost its majority.
Castaldi Paris himself will be facing re-election in Lija. “The college must be supportive of local councils and should be more inclusive. It should also set targets to accomplish concrete results,” Castaldi Paris said.

jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt

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