Updated 1233 – Covid-19 update
101 new cases of coronavirus were reported in the past 24 hours, with 123 recovering. This brings the total number of cases up to 12,426, with 1,420 still being active. 2,399 tests were carried out yesterday.
Updated 1200 – Court rejects request for media ban on Yorgen Fenech criminal proceedings
Yorgen Fenech returned to court this morning, with the man standing accused of complicity in the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
His defence team sought to restrict media reporting on the case, a demand which was refused by Magistrate Montebello.The right to freedom of expression must be exercised in good faith and based on facts, she said, considering that the accused is a well-known person.
However, she asked for public debates about the case should be avoided and only the media should report on the criminal proceedings under way. She condemned journalists who wrote articles which could have impinged on Fenech’s presumption of innocence.
On the other hand, the Court ordered the prosecution to disclose information to Yorgen Fenech’s lawyers about four particular phone calls made ahead of Fenech’s arrest.
Opposition Leader expresses hopes that Karin Grech murder is solved
Opposition leader Bernard Grech said that his cousin’s murder had tarnished Malta’s recent political history and remained a family wound. In a post on social media, Grech said: “I keep hoping that the truth will come out and there comes a day when the murder is solved.
“That very ugly chapter in our country’s history will only be closed when this murder and all political murders are resolved. Despite the number of years that have passed since then, I call on the police commissioner, to do everything possible to solve these murders.
Karin Grech was killed by letter bomb in 1977 during the doctors-government dispute.
Updated 0730 – All healthcare professionals should be vaccinated within five weeks, doctors insist
Doctors have urged Government to accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination process, insisting that all healthcare professionals should be vaccinated within five weeks.
In a statement this morning, the Medical Association said that while the “very slow pace” of 50 daily vaccinations was acceptable for the first couple of days, until the correct procedures were put into place, the Health Ministry should “ramp up the vaccination rates significantly to exceed 300 doses daily.
“This would have to be escalated to thousands per day once the general population starts being vaccinated.”
Updated 0725 – Newspaper Review
The Times of Malta shares Rachel Grech’s plea for everyone to take the Covid-19 vaccine. Grech – a staff nurse – was the first Maltese person to take the jab yesterday after the first shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech had arrived in Malta on Saturday.
L-Orizzont recalls the 43th anniversary of the death of Karin Grech, a 15-year old girl that lost her life when a letter bomb exploded in her hands at the height of tensions between government and medical professionals. The crime remains unresolved.
The Malta Independent says that the first Covid-19 vaccine in Malta has been administered, adding that 55 healthcare staff were scheduled to receive the vaccine on Sunday.
In-Nazzjon reports that four new fatalities of Covid-19 were reported on Sunday, taking the death tally to 210. The number of active cases now stands at 1,447.
L-Orizzont says that authorities are expected to make away with the annual benchmark examinations, adding concerns from educators that this will lead children to study less.
In-Nazzjon headlines with Opposition Leader’s intervention on Sunday who insisted that these are not normal times for this country. Quoting revelations in the Sunday papers on an alleged conversation between the Prime Minister and the Tax Commissioner, the PN leader insisted that the fact that the Police required the PM’s go ahead to intervene showed that the institutions were not functioning as required.
The Malta Independent reports that l-Istrina, the annual charity marathon in aid of the Malta Community Chest Fund, raised over EUR 6.5 million in a strong show of solidarity.
L-Orizzont shares the experience of a local pharmacist who recounts her experiences of meeting with people who are struggling to cope, both due to medical issues as well because of economic challenges.
In-Nazzjon says PM Robert Abela is trying to hide the truth through his silence on the recent allegations that the same Abela requested information from the Tax Commissioner on the fiscal situation of the Opposition Leader.
L-Orizzont reports that the Ocean Viking, a ship that was detained in Palermo, has been released from detention and will resume its activities of saving migrants who are at risk in the Mediterranean Sea.
Vaccine has no effect on genetics – Dr Mallia Azzopardi
The Head of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Mater Dei Hospital revealed that the Pfizer Biontech vaccine has no effect on genetics. Dr Charles Mallia Azzopardi said that scientists had come up with this vaccine so quickly with the help of an unprecedented investment in research and clinical trials, and not because the work was done carelessly. Interviewed on the national broadcaster, Dr Mallia Azzopardi called on all those eligible to take the vaccine, including people who had recovered from Covid.
Dr Charles Mallia Azzopardi everyone should be vaccinated in what he has described as a shield for the worst effects of Covid including pneumonia.
“The studies done so far on these vaccines prove without a doubt that if I catch the infection it will not harm me. Meaning the virus will not go down into my lungs and will not harm me, neither it will give me a high fever, it will not kill me and I will not go to the hospital or the ITU.
Malta will be among first nations to recover – PM Robert Abela
Prime Minister Robert Abela expressed confidence that Malta will be the first country to recover economically from the pandemic. The Prime Minister made this statement when he was being interviewed in a telephone link-up shortly after the first Covid-19 vaccination was administered in Malta. Dr Abela added that the country will start on the road to recovery at the same time that the people’s health is being safeguarded.
Speaking on Labour radio,the Prime Minister stated that the last months involved non-stop work for the Government, as hard decisions were taken in order to safeguard both the health and the living of the Maltese and Gozitans.
The Prime Minister declared that today’s administration of the first vaccination signifies the start of the road back to normality, adding that the vaccine will help so that Malta will be among the first countries to recover economically from Covid. Dr Abela described yesterday as an emotional day for him, not least with the arrival of the vaccines which, he said brought with them hope and courage for all Maltese and Gozitans.
PN leader urges Police to perform duties
Referring to an item carried in The Sunday Times about an alleged conversation between Prime Minister Robert Abela and Tax Commissioner Marvin Gaerty, in which it is being alleged that they spoke about confidential information in connection with Dr Grech’s taxes, Dr Grech urged the Police to perform their duties by continuing with their investigations in connection with this case. The PN leader reiterated that if the Prime Minister has nothing to hide, he should give the Police permission to continue with their work.
Grech also touched upon the arrival of the anti-Covid vaccine, stateing that the vaccine is a means to combat the pandemic, but it is not the only way, and reminded that people should not congregate in groups in order not to spread the virus. Dr Grech added that everyone should be responsible, and expressed confidence that the country will overcome the pandemic.
Covid-19 Update
84 new Covid-19 cases were detected in the 24 hours preceding Sunday’s update. Another four people died. There were 118 recoveries registered.
CDE News
