VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Civil society group Occupy Justice has condemned government official Neville Gafà after he was filmed removing tributes to murdered journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia just hours after commemorations marking the eighth anniversary of her assassination.
Hidden camera footage showed Gafà, a staffer in the Office of the Prime Minister, clearing flowers, wreaths and candles from the Great Siege Memorial around 3am on Friday. The items, placed by activists, relatives and foreign embassies, were later found in nearby bins. The memorial was targeted several times overnight. Occupy Justice accused Gafà of misleading followers by posting an earlier video suggesting the tributes had not been replaced. The group questioned whether Prime Minister Robert Abela condones such conduct from a taxpayer-funded employee.
Centrist party Momentum called for Gafà’s immediate dismissal, a transparent investigation, and a public apology from the Prime Minister. Leader Arnold Cassola described the act as “a blatant show of disrespect toward the memory of a murdered journalist.”
Several embassies expressed anger after their tributes were destroyed. The Dutch embassy said it was “appalled,” declaring: “Vandals can destroy our flowers, but not our support for Daphne.” The Irish and German embassies echoed the sentiment.
Gafà, a controversial former aide to ex-premier Joseph Muscat, has faced numerous scandals including migrant pushback operations, a Libyan visa racket, and threats against journalists. Despite past court findings against him, he was reappointed to government in August 2025.
Repubblika president Vicki Ann Cremona said the act “is an outrage to democracy” and urged that both Gafà and his superiors be held accountable.
– Photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
