The President and Prime Minister are downplaying the implications of Daphne Caruana Galizia's assassination by calling for 'national unity' and working to transform her into a martyr for their cause, her sister wrote today.

In a post on Facebook, Corinne Vella said Ms Caruana Galizia's writing was effective because it exposed and investigated corruption without fear or favour.

“To call for unity is to abuse her legacy. There should never be unity with the criminal and the corrupt.

“What Malta needs is justice, transparency, and political accountability, and not for calm to replace justified anger and fear,” she wrote.

Ms Vella said that the President’s call for national unity could only entrench political complaisance and complicity.

"Malta needs to break the collusion between crime, money, and politics. It needs political action, justice, and change. This cannot happen under Coleiro Preca and Muscat's watch."

Ms Caruana Galizia's assassination, she said, could not have been possible without collusion at some level between crime, money, and politics.

“At very least, it required political complaisance at the highest levels in Malta. The assassination happened in Malta, but it is not just a national problem. Its implications go far beyond Malta's shores.”