Malta yesterday lost an “affable and hands-on politician”, former minister George Hyzler who died at Mater Dei Hospital, aged 85.

Dr Hyzler, a doctor by profession, was instrumental in re-shaping the country post 1987, especially the health sector, to which he dedicated a lot of energy as parliamentary secretary until 1992.

He then served as minister for social security until 1995, responsible for family affairs and housing, before he resigned from Parliament and was appointed director of the International Institute on Aging by the UN and Malta government, a post he occupied until 1998.

President Emeritus Eddie Fenech Adami paid tribute to him, remembering him for his dedication and special interest he took in patients by following their cases. For him, being a parliamentary secretary was not simply about formulating policies but he added a personal touch, Dr Fenech Adami said.

He said Dr Hyzler was “very communicative and forthcoming” and was there whenever he needed him.

Acting President and former Speaker of the House, Anton Tabone, who replaced Dr Hyzler as Acting President when the latter asked not to be re-appointed in 2008, said he got to know him when he was first elected to Parliament in 1966. Dr Hyzler had already been in Parliament since 1962.

He said he could vividly remember when, sometime after the 1987 election, Dr Hyzler inaugurated the first CCU at the Gozo General Hospital when Mr Tabone was Gozo Minister.

“My office was next door to his in Parliament so we used to meet regularly. Sometimes, after we finished our work, I would go to his office for a chat. I was close to him. I will always remember him as an active person who was a doer and whose character would fill people with enthusiasm. He was affable, outgoing and outspoken,” he said, adding people around him always knew where they stood.

He regretted not having been able to see him in hospital before he passed away.

Former Speaker Louis Galea also paid tribute to Dr Hyzler: “Few people had the grace to be as young at heart as George Hyzler. The older he got, the greater the youthful zest and exuberance he exuded. The characteristic that has always struck me in the 40 years plus I have known and worked with him is that George was an impatient doer. He gave you the impression of plunging into doing things before thinking them out. But this belied a very sharp brain, a fine intelligence and a fast thinker. He was a first class family doctor, not only an extremely competent medic but one with a big, human, generous heart,” Dr Galea said when contacted in Luxembourg where he now sits on the European Court of Auditors.

He said one of the “extraordinary moments” he had to face with Dr Hyzler was the formation of the first Cabinet of Dr Fenech Adami in 1987.

Dr Hyzler had been shadow health minister between 1971 and 1987, when the Nationalists were in opposition, “so it was somewhat of a shock when Dr Fenech Adami, for the first time, included health in a vast portfolio within the Social Policy Ministry, which he then entrusted to my care.”

Dr Galea said that, at the time, he was the youngest minister and Dr Hyzler was one of the three parliamentary secretaries assigned to his ministry.

“How could I, a lawyer by training, presume to lead the ‘ministry of health’ when George not only was a fine doctor but had closely followed and actively engaged in discussing the vicissitudes of the Maltese health sector in and outside Parliament for the whole of the 1971-1987 Labour government times. After the shock, however, we all settled in the job and I still believe we forged one of the best ministry teams I can think of,” he said.

Former Social Policy Minister and now European Commissioner, John Dalli, remembered Dr Hyzler as an MP elected from the Qormi district. “He was the man of Qormi and when I entered politics, we used to meet in his garage,” he recalled.

Mr Dalli said he worked with Dr Hyzler in the setting up of the PN youth section. “He worked tirelessly for the party and his constituents.”

His tirelessness was also a quality that impressed Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi who said Malta had lost a great family doctor whose main focus was his patients.

“He was close to people and will continue to be remembered for the way he used to take care of his patients. He was a loved politician from Qormi who made his contribution towards the strengthening of democracy and free expression and to the strengthening of the social and health sectors. When I took over as Social Policy Minister, I continued working on things he had started,” he said, adding Dr Hyzler reached the apex of his political career when he served as Acting Speaker.

The PN and the Labour Party, as well as the Qormi local council, praised Dr Hyzler for his commitment in his profession and politics and send their condolences to Dr Hyzler’s family.