PN will support George Vella’s nomination for president

The Nationalist Party will vote for George Vella when his nomination for president comes before parliament, Adrian Delia announced this evening.

The PN leader said the decision was taken after a meeting of the parliamentary group.

“The Opposition is putting the national interest first. Joseph Muscat chose political expediency and stuck to his position instead of giving a signal that he wanted to bestow credibility to the national institutions. We will rise above political partisanship and vote in favour of George Vella’s nomination,” Delia said during an activity at the PN Mosta club.

Delia had asked the Prime Minister to nominate someone from the PN camp and agree to have the president elected by a two-thirds majority in parliament as a sign of national unity.

Vella’s nomination was officialised this week after the former Labour deputy leader and foreign minister’s name was approved by Cabinet and the Labour parliamentary group. The PN had described Vella's nomination as a missed opportunity.

On Wednesday, Delia said that with his decision Muscat ignored the recommendations made by the Venice Commission and at the first chance opted not to strengthen the national institutions.

The PN's decision was welcomed by the Labour Party. "The general reaction over the past hours has confirmed that Vella's choice was adequate because of his integrity and experience," the PL said in a statement.

President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca’s term comes to an end at the start of April.