[attach id=412239 size="medium" align="left"]Outgoing MUMN president Paul Pace. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi[/attach]

Nurses’ union chief Paul Pace yesterday announced his resignation, in the wake of a story published in Times of Malta which highlighted his poor showing in the union’s council election.

In a statement released shortly after timesofmalta.com broke the news of Mr Pace’s departure, the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses announced that Maria Cutajar was to succeed him as president.

The union added that Mr Pace had been unanimously nominated as honorary president in recognition of his contribution during his eight-year stint at the helm of the MUMN.

Contacted by this newspaper, the outgoing president yesterday morning admitted he was shocked by the result and at the same time expressed a feeling of “betrayal” from some of the council members.

“Though I have no proof of it, I got wind that there had been manoeuvres behind my back to oust me from the union,” Mr Pace explained.

Though I have no proof of it, I got wind that there had been manoeuvres behind my back to oust me from the union

In a letter to the newly elected council members, who met yesterday morning to appoint the officials, Mr Pace expressed disappointment that the votes obtained by each candidate had been leaked to the media for the first time.

While thanking all members for their support, Mr Pace said that it was clear that he had lost their backing.

Though he also submitted his resignation as president of the Forum Unions Maltin, sources said it had not been accepted.

They added that the outgoing MUMN boss would be willing to stay on, but the decision would be taken in the coming days, when the Forum Unions Maltin convenes to discuss the issue.

The outgoing president was known for his impulsive and quite often militant approach and never shied away from threatening industrial action.

In a tweet yesterday, Parliamentary Secretary for Health Chris Fearne congratulated the new president, expressing his eagerness to work with Ms Cutajar.

Her appointment was no surprise, as she had been widely tipped to replace Mr Pace following his miserable showing in eighth place in an election of 10 council members.

The new MUMN president is set to address a news conference tomorrow, in which nurses will give their reaction to the government’s proposal for a radical shake-up in the healthcare sector.

Meanwhile, incumbent Colin Galea was confirmed as the union general secretary, Noel Camilleri was appointed vice-president and George Saliba financial secretary.

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