Demonstrators at today’s civil society protest in Valletta will hear a recorded message from Pilatus Bank whistleblower Maria Efimova, who expressed the wish to be there in person but fears for her safety if she came to Malta.

“I would sincerely wish to be present personally. I admire the courage and perseverance you show, standing up for your country, for your compatriots and for the democratic values you hold dear,” Ms Efimova will tell those present.

The former Pilatus Bank employee and key source for slain journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia will send a message of encouragement to people seeking truth and justice, calling on those with information to come forward, a spokeswoman for one of the organisers, #occupyjustice, told this newspaper.

The protest, co-organised by pressure group Awturi, will be held at 4pm in front of Castille in Valletta.

The organisers hope that political parties, the Church, unions and employers, societies and NGOs will join to demand justice and truth.

Opposition leader Adrian Delia, who has blamed the government for creating the circumstances leading to Caruana Galizia's murder, tweeted late on Saturday: 'We the people shall stand tall and march together.'

Dr Delia has so far not attended events related to Caruana Galizia in view of his own criticism of the blogger in reply to stories she wrote about him.

The organisers say they are gravely concerned about recent developments brought about by the Daphne Project.

“It is very clear that Minister Konrad Mizzi lied to the Maltese and European Parliament. It is very clear that both he and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Keith Schembri, lied to the people about their involvement in secret companies where they were stashing millions from kickbacks.

“We now know, through documented evidence, that they set up a structure to earn €150,000 a month in bribes. And yet, the Prime Minister has not sacked them. Enough is enough now,” #occupyjustice appealed.

The activists still cannot understand how Economy Minister Chris Cardona has not been interrogated, despite two witnesses claiming to have seen him speaking to one of the accused in the case of Ms Caruana Galizia’s assassination – before and after the murder.

“We cannot sit at home and look at this unfold and do nothing. We have the right to take to the streets and march because these people cannot be trusted with the future of the country where my children live. We are protesting because ultimately corruption has a cost, and this cost will be paid for by our children.”

The protest will also be addressed by Occupy Justice activist Rachel Williams, Awturi activist Alex Hili, lawyer Emma Portelli Bonnici, MEP David Casa and MP Godfrey Farrugia.

I admire the courage and perseverance you show

Ms Efimova is currently in Greece after the courts there ruled against extraditing her to Malta.

“Maria wanted to be here with us – but as we all know this government has made it impossible for her to be here for her own safety,” the #occupyjustice spokeswoman said.

“Instead of offering protection to her as a whistleblower on that money-laundering machine, Pilatus Bank, this government has hounded her out of the country and it had to take another EU country – Greece – to offer her protection.”

Occupy Justice have called on the police to investigate Economy Minister Chris Cardona following revelations by the Daphne Project. Photo: Jonathan Borg

Ms Efimova has alleged, in claims first published by Ms Caruana Galizia, that secret Panama company Egrant belongs to Michelle Muscat, wife of the Prime Minister.

Ms Caruana Galizia had published Ms Efimova’s account, which included details about an alleged $1 million transfer to Egrant from Azerbaijan’s ruling family. The Prime Minister and Mrs Muscat deny the claims.

Pilatus Bank sued Ms Efimova for fraud, accusing her of using some €2,000 of company money without authorisation. Ms Efimova denied the claim, insisting she had been authorised to use the money. She had herself previously sued Pilatus over unpaid wages.

After Ms Caruana Galizia was murdered, she fled Malta for Greece.  A European arrest warrant was issued at Malta’s request after she missed two court appearances, but she turned herself in at an Athens police station last month.

Soon after her arrest, a group of MEPs – who had formed the European Parliament delegation on the rule of law – wrote to the Greek authorities calling on them to protect Ms Efimova and ensure she was not returned to Malta.

The Iranian-born chairman and owner of Pilatus, Ali Sadr Hasheminejad, is  under arrest in the US, where he faces charges of money laundering and violating US sanctions. He is liable for a 125-year-jail term if convicted.

Who are the two pressure groups?

#occupyjustice, set up a week after the murder of Ms Caruana Galizia, is a group of activists led by women, while Awturi is made up of people in their late teens and early 20s. None of them are authors but they call themselves Awturi ta’ Malta Ġdida as they would like to write a new direction for Malta.

There are no political parties behind them “despite any spin that might be making the rounds”.

They are simply “putting aside” their lives for now, to fight the “undoing of our nation”.