Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia should intervene and stop the destruction of a Gozitan “museum-grade farmhouse” that has been highlighted for its pristine architecture, an NGO has said.

Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar said Farrugia should issue an Emergency Conservation Order to protect the Xewkija building and then order an investigation into why the Planning Authority approved a permit for its destruction, just days after refusing an initial application just days before.

"Failure to do so will render both the Ministry and Planning Authority complicit in this crime of destruction of our national heritage. A nation that destroys its past, destroys its future," it said.

FAA made its call in a press statement that accused planning and conservation authorities of forming part of a “cabal of corruption’.

It said that the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage was turning a blind eye to large developers while then being a stickler with small-scale projects; that the Planning Authority was accepting applications fronted by people who are not the real site owners; and that a “crony” of a local mega-developer was now in a position of power at the Environment and Resources Authority.

The NGO was reacting to news that the Planning Authority had given its go-ahead for the part-demolition of an old farmhouse in Gozo's Xewkija, with the rest set to be encircled by a big apartment block.

The centuries-old building is so pristine, it could serve as a museum of typical Gozitan architecture, NGOs have said. 

The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage had objected to the original application, which stated that the building should be retained in its entirety with minimal intervention.

The Planning Authority initially refused the application. But while an appeal was lodged, a second application was filed before the PA and a new case officer, for inexplicable reasons, failed to include the most significant reason for refusal made by the PA itself in the first application.