Updated 1.39pm
The president of Malta’s southern regional council has blamed a lack of air conditioning at an EU meeting yesterday for his falling asleep during a speech by a Spanish politician.
Southern Regional Council president Jesmond Aquilina was spotted sleeping through a speech by Spanish politician María Chivite during a Committee of the Regions plenary session in Brussels Wednesday.
Footage of the incident shared on X by Spanish outlet The Objective shows Aquilina sleeping with his head resting on his shoulder during Chivite’s speech. He can be seen raising his head shortly after, though his eyes remain closed.
Aquilina told Times of Malta “the air conditioning was not working – I had a nap for five seconds then went and got a coffee”.
“I am being ridiculed for something that comes naturally; it can happen to anyone,” he said.
Aquilina, a career banker, was elected councillor in 1994 and has served on the Qormi Local Council – his hometown – for more than two decades, including as mayor and vice mayor.
The Committee of Regions is comprised of more than 300 local and regional representatives from every country across the EU.
The European Commission and Council of the European Union are obliged to consult the committee when proposals have repercussions at a regional or local level.
Wednesday’s plenary session, continuing today, included debates on sustainable tourism, the common agricultural policy, water resilience and climate change.
Defending Aquilina in a Facebook post on Thursday afternoon, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said it was “easy to try to make fun of an episode. It’s not easy, however, to do the effective work that Jesmond Aquilina has done for Regional and Local Councils in recent years”.