Alarming number of 'unknown fathers' in Malta

Marianna Galea Xuereb

May 16th 2009, 01:39

@Sandro Grech

“The solution is simple - remove benefits to single parents and children allowances will be issued only to married parents. ....” Sorry I do not agree because that would still encourage the existence of “married families” living as pure parasites of society.

In my opinion one solution would be to remove benefits – including so-called “children’s” allowances (which is frequently squandered on trivialities for the parents rather then real children’s needs anyway) – to people who have never worked and paid national insurance and taxes. No individual will be allowed to claim child benefit before he/she has worked and paid national insurance / taxes for a total of at least four years. This will ensure that child benefit may be claimed only by parents who at least know what it means to have to earn one’s own living

1. Marriage ought never to be a license for irresponsible siring of children.

2. The state should stop the present practice of positive discrimination in favour of single, ever unemployed teenage parents (or older ones for that matter) and negative discrimination against working married couples.

See also http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/2009/01/04/l3.html

Joe Zammit

Feb 15th 2009, 13:16

"80% of baptisms in Paola are registered as 'unknown father'". Who said so? Paola parish priests completely deny this. Only 16% of baptisms are with an unknown father. The great majority of baptisms are celebrated in the presence of both parents. This proves that to date our marriages are still going strong. By God's grace we continue to work to help all married couples in their sterling mission of getting and educating their offspring according to teaching of the Catholic Church.

O.Girxti

Feb 9th 2009, 08:59

Do you really think that all of them are unknown fathers?
Do you know that a single mother, has priority for social housing than a happy couple - the government makes it more easy for a single mother to get a house than a couple that wants to build a family, and also has a lot of government benefit.

Unknown father, is when a girl get raped, thats the case to help them,
Not when they go on a one night stand and then OHH ... she knew the risks.

Also there may be case that they write single mother get for govermnet benefit and they are still with their boyfriend, just to take all benefits.

Investigate MORE before giving out money, as if Maltese taxxes are infinate.

M Grech

Feb 9th 2009, 06:10

With politicians doing their very best not to tackle this situation, I can see no way out of it. Let it be known that, even those naive enough not to work around the system, are being ably advised to register the father as unknown because "it pays to do so". I have personally met 15 year olds, who, in front of their own mother, claim they see no reason not to get pregnant at that age. They reasoned that with the government's assistance, they can easily survive. This is their only aim in life. Sad if not depressing.

Joseph Vassallo

Feb 8th 2009, 22:44

@ J Magro 3rd post from the bottom: There is a huge difference between doling out money to co-habiting partners in benefits and recognising similar relationships between partners who work and are not a burden on the state.

My personal conviction is that there is still no other security as effective as marriage, not even social security. These young girls should be taught that going "on social" denies them the security that every caring-mother and child is ultimately entitled to. In other words, by declaring a fatherless offspring, they are shooting themselves in the foot. Surely the parents should be wise enough to point this out to them.

Joseph Vassallo

Feb 8th 2009, 22:18

On the point of social welfare, in the UK the practice is that single mothers [unmarried or divorced] who receive social benefits, are not allowed to have partners living with them at their habitat. It is normal for the state to engage agents to detect if a mother claiming state aid has in fact got a live-in partner and if discovered to be in the affirmative, aid is withdrawn and refunds are often required for periods determined to have been unqualified. This applies even when the partner is himself on social benefits.

If the mother then decides to return to observe regulations, state aid is returned but there is a significant delay and many find themselves forced to go into debt in order to fend for themselves and for their children.

The general public is encouraged to report cases of suspected abuse.

For the sake of accuracy I have to say that such beneficiaries are allowed to have their partners stay overnight not more than 3 times a week. What do you make of that?

lgalea

Feb 8th 2009, 21:40

Marianna Galea Xuereb
That's a very good argument which would also see their irresponsible parents forfeiting their children allowance and other benefits. I am sure that then unknown father will be a thing of the past.

martin saliba

Feb 8th 2009, 21:18

Where is the morality that the church preaches?? Dose it not have a moral obligation to disclose " Unknow fathers " to to the appropiate authorities? Is this not in the church;s list of morals? The state should make it illegal to hide any suspicion of fatherhood. There is a lot more to be said , but for the time being i'll stop here

Noel Cutajar

Feb 8th 2009, 21:00

Interesting choice of words...alarming number of someone who is unknown.

Jimmy Magro

Feb 8th 2009, 19:14

I come to these blogs to offer solutions and add my personal views since I have my own belief about how things should be done. A single mother must go to court to have the matter approved by an independent institution of the land before she is allowed to register her child with a Father Unknown Label.

The fact remains that whatever the reason, the state must not be involved in paying out gifts out of taxpayers' money. Once the benefits are withdrawn from circulation, single mother figures will go down to the numbers we have had until the 50's and 60's. I am not saying that these single mothers is a recent occurance but there is no doubt that welfare has increased the numbers and is acting as an incentive to build a lifestyle based on co-habitation and a very bad label for the child that he has to carry the stigma for life.

There is no love into this. The media should interview these children to know what they feel knowing that their mother, for her selfishness, has declared the son/daughter Father Unkown. What a heart do these people have?

I am very proud to know my parents.

Jesmopnd Micallef

Feb 8th 2009, 18:50

First of all "Unknown Father" does not really exist. DNA testing can trace who the father is. It makes me wonder why such terms are legally exceptable. May I suggest the use of the term "Anonymous Father" in such cases. Even though I personally don't agree to this, in the first place, as I wish to be a PROUD father oneday, and let the whole planet know about it !!!

Why does such terminology is used ? There may be countless reasons for this !!! Reasons that may be understood ....................but also challenged if need be.

Sorry..........NOT AT THE CHILDS EXPENSE. This is my point, the childs interest.

The Civil and Moral sides of this argument have to be consistent here.

Marianna Galea Xuereb

Feb 8th 2009, 17:29

@ Jimmy Magro “If they cannot remember whom they slept with, they should not be given state aid.”
I would go further and say that if they cannot remember who they slept with then they are definitely not fit to bring a child up. In the interest of the child’s health, safety and wellbeing such children should be taken away from such mothers and offered for adoption or fostering to well screened, suitable couples. In any case such children would be better off in well regulated orphanages than living with people who are pure parasites of society.

One of this nation’s greatest fallacies is the mistaken assumption that the natural parents and relatives are necessarily the best people to bring a child up.

deb bugeja

Feb 8th 2009, 17:24

Charles Muscat

I agree that one should help people in need however those who have been responsible to bring a child into this world must be held responsible to raise it and support it .

the trend now that couples are more living together than getting married increase the cost of social welfare with the mother putting 'unknown father ' on the certificate.

this is abuse and it must be stopped. Dr Josie Muscat talked about it in the election campaign and he was absolutely right. Investigations must be made.

lgalea

Feb 8th 2009, 16:57

Mary Pace
Then they should shoulder their (ir)responsibility and not pass the buck to other taxpayers.

Mark Aloisio
Then what do you propose to call them? Leeches of honest taxpayers is more appropriate because by promoting single mothers issues they are themselves leeches of the honest tax payers.

NO one who defends these leeches of society better known as single mothers and illegal immigrants will ever get my vote.

emanuel cortis

Feb 8th 2009, 16:42

Unless there is a change in Government's policy , this tragi-comedy will go on forever. The authorities should COMPEL these so-called single mothers to name the father of the child, otherwise they will forfeit their due social benefits. And what's more, make these new machos pay for the upkeep of the innocent children born out of wedlock. Why should we pay for them?. But I may be asking too much : both parties are afraid to legislate fearing loss of VOTES !!!. SHAME .

charles abela

Feb 8th 2009, 16:39

..as they say " ulied San Pawl"

Edward Bonnici

Feb 8th 2009, 16:34

Lack or morality and turning our back to God bring disasters.
On the increase destruction in our society is from within and is not coming from any outside threat, or outsiders as some peoples would hint. Thanks to the failure of secularism.


Mr. Jimmy Magro
‘This is not a question of religion but a question of moral values in our society.’

Values are the nucleus for religions and vise versa. No religion means any values. The key word in the above issue is ‘FORNICATION’, a thousands years old Biblical word which has turned recently to be a being modern lifestyle! This is a real destruction in disguise.

Mark Aloisio

Feb 8th 2009, 16:10

Mr. Seychell, is this how you plan to debate your peers if elected to the European Parliament - by calling "do gooders" (whatever that means) all those who have different opinions from you?

John Borg

Feb 8th 2009, 16:05

Malcolm Seychell: I propose a Facebook group called "Save Malta from Unknown Fathers" to accompany "Save Malta from Illegal Immigrants".

Miriam Cassar

Feb 8th 2009, 15:16

Kif hadd ma jsemmi d-dritt tat-tfal li jkunu jafu min hu missierhom?Dawn it-tijatrini li jsiru Malta- abbuzi bit-tfal biex jiehdu s-Servizzi Socjali- huma illegali fl-Unjoni Ewropeja. Milli jidher kulhadd idawwar il-ligijiet- l-aktar dawk li jikkoncernaw lit-tfal- kif jaqbel LILU- sija jekk hu individwu, Partit jew Ghaqda Religjuza. Grazzi. M.Cassar

Mary Pace

Feb 8th 2009, 14:18

George, maybe some couples just live together and raise a family without ever getting married is that there is no divorce allowed in Malta the state, so what is a young couple supposed to do when the first marriage does not work? join a monastery?

malcolm seychell

Feb 8th 2009, 13:40

AN was the only party before the election who said to the public that there was a rampant abuse of the system.

Some doo gooders said we hated single mothers.

We don't hate them but we know that this is an abuse.

A Special thanks should go to the super socialist minister Cristina, who did nothing when she was in charge of the social services department.


Azzjoni Nazzjonali didn't lie.

I am sure Onor Dalli will try and arrange this situation.

Joe Zammit

Feb 8th 2009, 13:09

The whole of the report and the comments passed on it show how right Christ and his Catholic Church are when they point to the evil effects of immorality. Immorality, taken in its stricter and wider senses, harms the foundations of every society. We need to listen more to the sound teaching of the Catholic Church so that we grow in maturity and in our Christian behaviour.

george gauchi

Feb 8th 2009, 13:05

There are couples who have more than one child between them and have been living together for the last 10 or more years and are not legally married,when you talk to them and ask them why don`t they marry the answer they give you is simpile, the MOTHER gets more money from the SOCIAL SECURITY by claiming that she don`t know who the FATHER is ,while at the same time she is living with him in the same flat or house,but on their ID cards have different addresses from each other.

E Darmanin

Feb 8th 2009, 12:05

Yes, it's all about money. Social aid, benefits, free medicines. What worse is that not only are the fathers known, but they are also living together, sometimes with the extended families (making entire families accomplices in this fraud) or even in social housing under the very noses of the authorities they are defrauding. HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN?? How can a couple benefit from social housing with the mother declaring as unknown the father of the child and living with him offically?? Mr Dalli, pleeease get a grip of things.

We once heard a story about a conversation overheard at a hairdressor. A mother was telling her unmarried daughter, herself a mother two, ahseb ghal iehor ha tkompli tibbenefika.....

Another story overheard. An unmarried couple having IVF, then registering as father unknown.

ABSOLUTELY DIGUSTING. This is not a religious issue. It's a moral and ethical issue reducing offspring to a means to get benefits. DISGUSTING

Charles Muscat

Feb 8th 2009, 11:43

There is so many illegal emigrants entering the Maltese Island and to play it catholic everyone is in open arms to help them, what is wrong with Maltese doing it among Maltese? No big deal. Can anyone explain what the church is all about?

Jimmy Magro

Feb 8th 2009, 11:41

@ Charles Sammut
I stated that this is not socialism as socialist never condoned abuse. This is not a question of being on the left or on the right. This is a question of what is good and bad. In short it is called pragmatism. I have always been thought that there was only one Woman who gave birth without a father and this was a miracle. In Malta this happens frequently and I cannot understand why Xarabank took the B'Bugia Madonna on stage when he should have taken all the single mothers since these are the modern miracles we have too pay through taxpayers' money.

When an employer taken on a JES aprectice, the inspector comes unannounced to ensure.that the apprentice is on her desk. The social security inspectors should visit each and every single mother during the night to find out with whom they are sleeping with.

Abuse is not being done by those unemployed - who are somewhat employed but registers for work. Those who attack the welfare system are duty bound that the welfare system is not abused. But this benchmark applies to all - even if the single mother happens to be that of millionaire.

Mario Tabone-Vassallo

Feb 8th 2009, 11:12

Genitur, soltu omm, li jrid irabbi tarbija wahdu, soltu jinhtieg ghajnuna u tajjeb li din tinghata. Izda ebda minn dal-koncepzjonijiet li qed insemmu ma huma immakulati. Ghalhekk bilfors kien hemm ragel u mara nvoluti ghal kull wahda. Xieraq li l-inseminatur jerfa' r-responsabbilta tieghu billi jrodd lura lill-gvern il-flus li l-gvern johroq biex jghin lill-omm li tkun trabbi t-tarbija tieghu. Mhux sewwa, oxxen, li nies li jhallsu t-taxxi u jadhmu sfieq biex irabbu l-uliedhom u forsi wkoll jillimitaw in-numru ta' wlied minhabba l-finanzi, jaghmlu tajjeb ghal min jinsemina l-hawn u l-hemm u mohhu mar-rih. Kull gvern, hekk qed ikeskes lin-nies biex ikunu irresponsabbli u jghakkes lil min hu responsabbli. Imisshom jisthu

Charles Sammut

Feb 8th 2009, 10:59

@ Jimmy Magro

Socialism is not the PL's monopoly. Far from it. The PN is in some respects more to the left than the PL.

There are many in the PN fold who would not dare write what you wrote because they fear that they would be labeled as fascists by their left liberal party colleagues.

You are of course perfectly right in your analysis. Good has become bad and wrong has become right. Hekk, ghax moda.

Joanne Micallef

Feb 8th 2009, 10:53

And when Dr Josie Muscat addressed this issue during the last electoral campaign he was attacked left right and centre, and the church kept mum throught the whole thing....... what a farce.

lgalea

Feb 8th 2009, 10:48

DNA tests or NO Children allowances and other benefits.
It's not right that they enjoy themselves and we pay for their enjoyment.
They all know with whom they've had sex, so there is no excuse to accept unknown father.
They enjoyed themselves and they must bear the responsibility.
Most of them are living with their partner and they register father unknown to get all the benefits while we pay all the taxes.
Government, you have my unreserved support and I am sure of the majority of other taxpayers to stop all allowances to single parents and make the father shoulder his responsibility.
At this day and age it's unbelievable to continue to accept father unknown.

Jimmy Magro
You are perfectly correct.

Jimmy Magro

Feb 8th 2009, 10:38

This is not socialism. This is an abuse. I already wrote about it in another blog. Single mothers can only enjoy social benefits if the child is born with a mother and a father. Otherwise the state must remian out of the picture. I cannot understand what type of hearts do these mothers have when for money they declare the child without a father. They should be all ashamed and named. Imagine the trauma of that child when he/she wants to know who their father was; and because mother wanted state aid they declared him without a known father. If they cannot remember whom they slept with, they should not be given state aid.

This is part of society's fault too. Look at the flashy magazines on the front page and you will see pictures of children born outside marriage as if this is something to be cheered about. This is not a question of religion but a question of moral values in our society. Values have gone down through the capitalist greed for more and more.

After all it was the PN that introduced legislation in favour of co-habitating couples and slowly they want to provide more rights.

Joe Bugeja

Feb 8th 2009, 10:22

All to blame is the government, every one knows why, if our government makes some good investigations regarding the subject he finds that many of those who registered their children with unknown father are all living together. Living an normal married life. They all do it for social benefits and allowances. Which I think it is not fair for those who are married and pay taxes etc..................

so I hope that our government would take action soon. And you would see how many then would register their children unknown father,

Charles Sammut

Feb 8th 2009, 10:10

This is socialism at its best.

Once you start rewarding irresponsible behaviour, what can you expect? Irresponsible behaviour and social welfare abuse will skyrocket. The important thing is that you grab the votes of these abusers.

The axiom is " Know the rules so you can break them properly."

We can observe the same phenomenon in illegal immigration. Once you establish parameters for asylum, then, every man and his dog who feel that they can somehow satisfy those parameters, will be on the boat to Somalta. The results are there for all to feel.

This problem (unknown fathers) was highlighted by AN in its electoral manifesto and it is heartening to see that Minister Dalli is doing something concrete to address this abuse.