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The Ringleaders Of The PN Rebellion: Who Are The People Challenging Adrian Delia?

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Only one day is left before the main vote of the Nationalist Party’s General Council takes place which will decide on a motion that will significantly affect the political scene.

Since the May elections (which saw the Nationalist Party perform abysmally in both the European and Local Council elections), PN Leader Adrian Delia has been under intense pressure from his critics to assume responsibility.

For two months straight, a tit-for-tat civil war has been taking place between those who support Delia and those who oppose him. This has all boiled down to a petition being pushed by Delia’s critics calling for the General Council to decide if it has confidence in the embattled leader.

In the ensuing turmoil that has engulfed the ailing party, there are five people who have consistently challenged Delia and have pushed for the petition that will test his standing.

This is what we know about them.

1. Ivan Bartolo

The founder of the software company 6PM (which he established in 1996 and employed over 175 people by 2017), Ivan Bartolo stepped down from the board in 2018. Before that, it was discovered that the company was found to have inflated its profits.

Bartolo was also a candidate of the Nationalist Party in the 2017 general election in the 9th district, obtaining a total of 1,204 first count votes. When the PN decided that he would not be co-opted in Parliament, Bartolo declared that his career in politics came to an end and was no longer on his radar.

Despite this, he was given a business development role by Adrian Delia. He then resigned from this role in May 2018, concluding politics is not a journey he wanted to pursue.

Bartolo has established himself as one of the main challengers of Delia who did not rule out that he would run for party leader.

2. Mark Anthony Sammut

Mark Anthony Sammut is somewhat of a rarity for the Nationalist Party, being one of the few young and new faces of the party. He is a local councillor in Gudja, which is also one of the few localities where PN was able to retain its level of support.

Working as a Senior Infrastructure Engineer at Gamesys, Mark Anthony Sammut studied Electrical engineering at the University of Malta and University of Nottingham and also read a Masters in Wireless Networks at Queen Mary, University of London.

He is also one of the first people to publicly challenge Delia after the May elections. In protest to Delia’s stubbornness to assume responsibility for the results achieved, Sammut resigned from his rule as Executive Council President.

3. Emma Portelli Bonnici

Like Mark Anthony Sammut, Portelli Bonnici is one of the few Maltese youths who is active in the Nationalist Party, currently holding the position of Secretary-General within MZPN (the party youth wing).

She studied Law at the University of Malta and works at Fenech & Fenech Advocates. Portelli Bonnici can be described as a typical youth when it comes to current issues; she is clearly outspoken for the environment, and is also for civil liberties as she was the President of We Are – The University of Malta LGBT Society.

But perhaps not too typically for Maltese people (particularly those in the political sphere),  she has also publicly shown her leniency towards abortion, which makes her one of the few liberal-minded people in PN.

4. Martin Musumeci

If his name rings a bell, that is because he is Robert Musumeci’s eldest brother. Who unlike his eldest brother, he is a fervent Labour supporter and has often stuck his neck out for Adrian Delia.

Martin Musumeci is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Malta in the Faculty of Education with a doctorate in Chemistry.

He is a Nationalist Councillor in the locality of Attard, along with being the Vice President of the Forum Professjonisti Partit Nazzjonalista.

5. Emvin Bartolo

Emvin Bartolo is a local councillor in the locality of Mellieha who got re-elected in the May elections. He is also active in the party’s Sectional Committee in the area.

READ NEXT: Adrian Delia Denies He Missed Mortgage Payments As He Decries ‘Vicious Attack’ Days Before Crucial Vote

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