Granting migrants the right to vote in local council elections would be “jumping the gun” as more fundamental issues still need to be addressed, President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca told Times of Malta.

She was reacting to a proposal by human rights NGO Aditus to grant residential migrants the right to vote and stand in local council elections.

“Debating this now would stir more controversy than do any good. There are so many more basic problems with regard to migrants’ rights and integration. We should concentrate on those first,” she said.

Ms Coleiro Preca argued that society was not ready for the move.

“Many people in Maltese society have not yet accepted multiculturalism. We are not ready. This would be like deciding to bake a dish of potatoes and then eating them before they are cooked,” she said.

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