Eden Foundation's trustees will be meeting on Tuesday to decide on the merger with Razzett tal-Ħbiberija, as its founder Josie Muscat does everything he can to resist the move.
The trustees feared the meeting would be postponed and the issue unnecessarily dragged out, but five of the six members on the board have confirmed they will be attending to take a vote.
Razzett's trustees have already expressed themselves in favour of joining forces, but Eden's board of six members remain split. The vote should settle the matter.
The idea for a merger was raised last August. The two charities began exploring the potential of coming together because they shared similar principles and ideals in the provision of services to the same 350 clients - Eden provides education to children with learning difficulties, while Razzett focuses on their therapeutic well-being.
On November 10, auditors Deloitte and Touche and two law firms explained the legal and financial implications to the trustees of both sides. The reports established there were no reasons impeding the merger from a financial or legal perspective.
However, Tuesday's vote is being overshadowed by a meeting Dr Muscat called for parents last Thursday, which concluded with a unanimous appeal to the board to postpone the decision and consult with Eden's newly-set up Parent Association.
Eden's board of trustees' executive secretary Philip Rizzo, who is also a parent of a child who uses Eden's services, said that in 14 years of Dr Muscat's "autocracy" never once had he asked parents to vote on any matter.
"Nobody voted Josie out of Eden. He decided to leave and others undertook to take the charity forward. The rules of the foundation are being made a mockery of by the same person who set them up. The trustees will vote on Tuesday according to their conscience and in accordance with the statute," Mr Rizzo said.
Dr Muscat, who stepped down from his position at Eden last year to run the political party Azzjoni Nazzjonali, has returned to the scene to battle it out.
"When you're strong, why be bought out. Let's keep our strength and move forward. I'm not against cooperating with Razzett or any other organisations for that matter, but we don't need to merge - we're not compatible," he said when contacted.
Razzett's CEO Nathan Farrugia admitted that both sides had failed to explain the move to parents more emphatically. However, he stressed that if Tuesday's vote was in favour of the merger, no operational decision would be taken without consulting all the stakeholders, parents included.
"We're doing this in the best interests of the children. Once Eden decides on Tuesday we can be in a better position to give them a detailed analysis of the way forward," he said.