Godfrey and Marlene Farrugia resign from Partit Demokratiku

Partit Demokratiku MPs Godfrey and Marlene Farrugia have resigned from PD with immediate effect to make room, they said, for the small party to "rebuild."

In a press statement on Sunday morning, the Farrugias said that the party still has room to evolve, even if it has to be rebuilt from the ground up.

"For democracy to stay alive, there needs to be a political force that represents all those movements that embrace economic, social and environmental sustainability and respect towards humanity," the statement read.

They insisted that PD needed to develop into its next phase with the help of new faces and relatively new people, ultimately weaned off politicians that already come with their own baggage and story.

"With that said and with immediate effect, and with a sense of loyalty to our country and then to Partit Demokratiku, we our signing our resignation from PD," the Farrugias wrote.

They added that their parliamentary work would continue up until the end of the current legislature and that this would be their last since they would not be contesting another election. 

Partit Demokratiku was founded in 2016 after former Labour MPs Godfrey and Marlene Farrugia defected from the Labour Party. Godfrey Farrugia had been Health Minister under Prime Minister Joseph Muscat for a year up until March 2014 when he refused to take on a different portfolio.

In the run-up to the 2017 elections, the newly-formed PD announced it was in talks to form a coalition with the Nationalist Party in opposition. In the 2017 elections, PD candidates contested as Nationalist "tal-orangjo." Both Marlene and Godfrey Farrugia were elected into Parliament.