A moratorium on fireworks will only make things riskier as it would disrupt enthusiasts’ schedule and force them to work faster, according to Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici.
“We hope to God no more trouble occurs and I appeal to all those involved to take double and triple precautions,” he said.
Asked if he would take political responsibility if more people died as a result of fireworks explosions before the government inquiry was concluded, Dr Mifsud Bonnici played down any “hypothetical scenarios”.
“I am not responsible for the licensee. Those who are licensed must be careful themselves. If you give a licence to drivers and they crash or die, it is their responsibility.” Dr Mifsud Bonnici said he gave no deadline to the board of inquiry, set up to identify what had led to an increase in fireworks-related incidents.
“The quicker this is done the better. But speed should not be factored in at the expense of things being done well. It’s more important for things to be done in detail... we need to know the truth,” he said, pointing out that the board was made up of competent and experienced individuals.
He said there could have been a number of reasons behind the increase in fireworks factory explosions, including negligence, coincidence or the type of material being used.
He pointed out that many fireworks’ enthusiasts worked meticulously and fireworks were an important part of the country’s tradition, so if he were to put an end to their production he would be doing the country a disservice.
“What message would we be sending to those who have lots of fireworks stored? Abandon them?”
Alternattiva Demokratika has accused the two main political parties of forming an “alliance of death” by dismissing the possibility of a fireworks’ production moratorium, originally proposed editorially by The Times and by a swathe of commentators following Sunday’s devastating explosion in Gozo that left six people dead, nearly wiping out an entire family.
The idea has been backed by former explosives committee head Col Albert Camilleri, Brigadier Carmel Vassallo, former commander of the Armed Forces of Malta, and lawyer Georg Sapiano, among others.
The Church said it was open to discussing the idea of a moratorium.