An asylum seeker was yesterday morning left on the doorstep of the Good Shepherd (Bon Pastur) Home in Balzan by a colleague, after he was seriously injured in a workplace accident on a construction site in Imtarfa.
The colleague drove the accident victim to Balzan and left him in front of the Open Centre before driving off immediately. According to a witness who was on site at the time, the injured man, who is of African origin and believed to be in his early 30s, was moaning with pain while other residents from the house tried to assist in any way they could.
The injured man, who had only been a resident of the Balzan Home for the last few days, was afterwards rushed to hospital by an ambulance where he was found not to be in critical condition. This newspaper is informed that he enjoys humanitarian protection status and can work legally, although his exact status on the Imtarfa building site has not so far been established.
Fr Alfred Vella, director at Dar l-Emigrant, and Joe Cardona, director of Good Shepard Home, both condemned the way in which he was abandoned by his employers, and told MaltaToday that they have requested the Authorities to start acting on such cases.
Details of the case, including the number plate of the colleague’s van, were reported to the Rabat Police Station. Currently both the police and the Occupational Health and Safety Authority are investigating the incident.