Not every birthday is a cause for celebration. Instead of blowing out candles to celebrate the life of Jean Paul Sofia, his family will savour the first birthday without him since his brutal death under collapsed rubble last year.

“This is the first birthday of my beautiful boy that I cannot celebrate with him here,” Isabelle Bonnici, Sofia’s mother, wrote on social media.

She added that while she won’t write anything more on this, she hoped people will keep her late son in their hearts, and thanked everyone for doing so.

In December 2022, Jean Paul Sofia’s lifeless body was recovered from the rubble of the building site after a 16-hour operation. Nearly a year after the tragic accident, a public inquiry was opened following massive public pressure.

In July, five people, including the project’s developers, architect, and contractor, were charged in connection with his death.

Testifying in court, Jean Paul Sofia’s mother Isabelle Bonnici said that the last message she shared with her son was an “I love you” after he had left for work.

“He was my only son.  He had a life, a girlfriend, a future,” she said, her voice trembling.

Bonnici said that she hoped that her son’s death will lead to justice for her family and large reforms in the most dangerous industry on the island.

The people’s voices led to the opening of the public inquiry, showing that public pressure does work. However, the fight must continue until no other worker must die at the hands of money-driven negligence.

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