Independent Birkirkara councillor Kaylocke Buhagiar rejects Labour mayorship deal

Independent Birkirkara councillor Kaylocke Buhagiar remains adamant in becoming the locality’s permanent mayor despite Labour councillors trying to broker a deal.

In a statement on Monday evening, Labour’s most popular candidate in the locality Yana Debono Grech said a meeting was held between Labour councillors, Kaylocke Buhagiar and Labour Deputy leader Alex Agius Saliba.

“During the meeting, the independent candidate was offered the position of Mayor of Birkirkara for a period of two and a half years. It was also proposed that, for the remaining two and a half years, a Labour Party Mayor would take over, with the independent councillor serving as Deputy Mayor,” the statement read. “This proposal was made on the basis that, if the votes obtained by the Labour Party and those of the independent candidate are combined, they would amount to a majority of the votes in Birkirkara.”

But according to the statement, the councillor turned down the proposed deal, saying he wants to be mayor for the whole five years.

“The Labour Party cannot accept this request as it would not reflect the outcome of the electorate in Birkirkara,” the statement read. “Labour councillors in Birkirkara will ensure that the people's verdict is always respected, and they remain committed to continuing to work in the best interests of the Birkirkara community.”

In July, Nationalist councillor Desirei Grech was elected interim Birkirkara mayor after Debono Grech voted against the party’s nomination for the post – Kaylocke Buhagiar.

The instructions came after Debono Grech’s nomination for mayor achieved no majority.

After no nomination - either Labour, Nationalist or independent - achieved a simple majority in the vote for mayor, Grech was elected mayor for the period of three months on Tuesday, having been the most popular candidate from the most popular party.

MaltaToday is informed the decision to nominate Buhagiar has irked a number of Labour councillors, most notably Yana Debono Grech. She was the Labour Party’s most popular candidate in this year’s local council election, having been elected with 1,805 first count votes.

Councillor Desirei Grech was the most popular Nationalist candidate in the local council election, getting elected with 1,802 first count votes.

The Nationalist Party obtained the largest number of votes with 47.51%, compared to the 41.66% of the Labour Party.