It’s our president’s birthday! George Vella, who was sworn in as Malta’s tenth president just 20 days ago, turns 77 today, and is Malta’s oldest serving president.

Formerly a family doctor and foreign minister, Vella is described as a good, hardworking man by locals of his hometown in Zejtun and those who worked with him.

President George Vella has pledged to “respect life from start to finish” in his first speech after being sworn in. “As a doctor, I will fight for the health of this country and the respect for life from start to finish of every individual.” He also stated that he would refuse to sign any abortion law, insisting he would resign if it came to that.

President Vella also emphasised his vision for social justice and proper distribution of wealth. “I am convinced that whoever needs help should receive it as a right not as charity. We need to be aware that there is material poverty amongst our people.”

He also mentioned education and the environment, two aspects that are close to his heart, as well as cautioning against abuse on social media, insisting that it was not contributing to national unity and that we should strive for a community feel.

We wish a very happy birthday to President George Vella and a hearty best of luck for his time in office!