The three independent candidates who are contesting the March 9 General Elections this afternoon met at the University quadrangle were they debated their electoral proposals and gave details on their Electoral Manifestos.

The candidates were John Zammit for Allejanza Liberali (AL), Zaren Bonnici for Ta’ L-Ajkla and Tonio Mercieca who is contesting on his own. The debate started off with John Zammit, who spoke about his liberal party and what AL represents. AL is in favour of nudists and legalising Cannabis said Mr Zammit, while claiming that AL forms part of the Liberals that are among the most progressive movements in the world. He stated that the movement was among the most anti-clerical in Malta.

Zaren Bonnici kicked off his contribution by singing the party anthem and reminding all the students present of the Mass Meeting to take place at Birgu, tomorrow evening. He stated that if the sea water power station that he had proposed was not enough he would give out solar panels to the people for free.

Conservative candidate Tonio Mercieca spoke about his concerns, as a current student at University, on the problematic parking within the institution. He promised the students that if elected he would make sure to work on the construction of a better car park while also addressing the importance of increased stipends for students.

A link between Malta and Gozo should be created in the form of a bridge and not a tunnel, stated Mr Bonnici. He continued by saying that Gozitans should be able to work in Gozo if they choose and thus he would ensure the creation of more jobs on the island. Zaren Ta’ L-Ajkla accused both PN and PL of corruption and appealed to the students to vote for him so that he would be able to voice their concerns in parliament.

Mr Zammit believes that the way forward is by looking at Nordic countries and following their lead. He also stated that he was in favour of abortion in certain extreme cases such as rape or severe disability. AL candidate assured that he was in favour of Malta being part of the EU and that he was ready to work to ensure that more jobs are created through the development of more projects.

Independent candidate Tonio Mercieca proposed incentives for students that require a loan, through a government granted loan with an interest rate of 2% that can be paid back up to two years after graduation. He claimed to be against abortion and for a cohabitation law instead of the divorce law which was introduced. Mr Mercieca thanked the students for listening to the proposals being put forward by the independent candidates and for not interrupting as was done at the PN, PL and AD debate.