Only a few days after residents started campaigning with the aim of reclaiming public spaces that are being encroached on by outdoor catering establishments, we had a near miss.

A large umbrella placed in the playing field in Marsascala by a restaurant owner fell onto the soft rubber-paved area of the playground. A narrow escape indeed, considering that children frequent the area in droves.

Eyewitnesses who contacted me were dumbstruck. Their children could have borne the brunt of this unbridled encroachment on their children’s safety. 

Restaurant paraphernalia including tables and chairs have encroached on the playing field to a degree that they have virtually taken it over.

This is yet another incident that highlights the dangerous effects that the total disregard of authorities towards the illegal encroachment of public land is having on residents’ well-being and quality of life, if not their life itself.

Tables, chairs and umbrellas mere centimetres from passing traffic have become the norm in many places. What should have been a waning vestige from the pandemic, has now become a chronic occurrence.

In the meantime, the Lands Authority, responsible for public land, looks on. The proliferation of economic interests continues unabated and undisturbed. It is a race to the bottom.

This encroachment by stealth should not surprise us. It is symptomatic of a political landscape which emphasises the here and now. It is symptomatic of politicians whose alpha is the election, and omega is the next one. Making hay while the sun shines has become the deus ex machina to our political compass running riot.

Keep them happy. The influential ones, I mean. The ones who will deliver the goods when it matters most. The rest will take care of itself.

Consider the encroachment of private space by the offensive sounds of music in Valletta till one in the morning.

Consider the uglification of our landscape that encroaches on our spaces and aesthetics.

Consider the open fields taken up by goat farms (sic), villas in the middle of nowhere with the blessing of the ‘planning’ authority.

Consider the encroachment on the sanctity of our homes when unscrupulous developers claw at every inch of rock underneath our homes, rendering them unsafe. Ask Janet Walker and Miriam Pace’s family.

I have been blessed with solidarity when one of these bullies threatened me and my family for upsetting his boat- Brian Decelis

Consider the 2006 rationalisation exercise which has offered two million square metres to the gods for development, for them to gobble up within a generation.

Consider the daily onslaught of financial juggernauts that submit applications for development in every nook and cranny they can lay their hands on, keeping voluntary organisations breathless and unable to cope.  

Consider Ħondoq. Munxar. The marina planned in Marsascala.

Thankfully, residents and civic minded individuals, NGOs, ADPD and others, managed to successfully put enough spokes in their wheels to avert more pillage. More encroachment.

I have been blessed with the space to work alongside other residents in Marsascala to keep the bullies in check. I have been blessed with solidarity when one of these bullies threatened me and my family for upsetting his boat.

I feel privileged to be able to dedicate my energy and time to put a stop to encroachment on people’s lives that chips away at the quality of life we all deserve.

I am ready to keep serving.

Brian Decelis is a local council candidate on behalf of ADPD – The Green Party, for Marsascala.