MLP takes over mayorship in three councils

The Labour Party yesterday won the mayorship of San Gwann, Msida and Pietà for the first time since the party started contesting these localities six years ago.

The San Gwann council will now be led by Joseph Borg, who takes over from Kurt Guillaumier, the Msida mayor will be newcomer Alexander Sciberras taking over from Carmelo Grima and the Pietà council will be guided by Santo Attard taking over from Malcolm Mifsud.

The Malta Labour Party has a number of other new faces as mayors. They are Clyde Caruana in Zabbar, Emanuel Vassallo in Ghaxaq, Mario Calleja in Marsascala and Josephine Attard in Mtarfa.

They will be replace Labour mayors Domenic Agius (Zabbar), Joseph Mary Abdilla (Ghaxaq), Carmelo Mifsud (Marsascala) and John Camilleri (Mtarfa). The latter had been elected on the MLP ticket but assumed the independent label towards the end of 2003.

While Mr Caruana, Mr Vassallo and Mr Calleja are newcomers, heading Mtarfa will not be a first for Ms Attard, who was mayor before Mr Camilleri took over.

In Birkirkara, ordinarily a Nationalist stronghold but where the PN this time netted only a slim majority of 85 votes, the two main parties were on tenterhooks till late about which of them will win the mayorship. The result finally went the PN's way: The new mayor of Birkirkara, who takes over from Doris Borg, is another new face in the local council elections - Michael Fenech Adami, the President's son.

Other new Nationalist Party mayors are former MP Victor Galea Pace, who will be taking over from his wife Vivienne Mary in Victoria; newcomer Ian Castaldi Paris who takes over from Magy Magdalen Magri Naudi in Lija; and newcomer Marina Arrigo in Sliema, wife of former mayor and now Nationalist MP Robert Arrigo. She takes the top seat last occupied by Albert Bonello du Puis.

Mayors: The old and the new