Gżira mayor has ‘had enough’, quits Labour

In his resignation letter, he said he had no option but to quit, telling the party executive this was “probably the most important decision” of his life.

Borg Manchè said he felt the party no longer represented socialist values and disrespected him and his locality’s people over a number of issues.

“The party is no longer a socialist party that fights for workers. That is why I had joined the party in the first place, and so this resignation is only natural”, he said.

The outspoken 42-year old has clashed with Labour on a number of environmental and social issues, and had a major fallout with his party last March.

He heavily criticised party president Ramona Attard for fronting the Lands Authority’s court case regarding the controversial relocation of a petrol station to a public garden.

The council eventually won the court battle to stop the relocation in late April, however Borg Manchè said his actions “did not go down well with those who wanted to push private interests”.

He said seeing Labour MPs vote against a public inquiry into the death of Jean Paul Sofia made him consider his position “most profoundly”.

“That vote clearly showed me the workers’ party lost the scope for which it was founded more than 100 years ago”, he wrote in his resignation letter.

Borg Manchè has received hundreds of congratulations on his decision in social media.