Brave NGOs
When will our mega developers be stopped from arrogantly pillaging Malta at will while corrupt, long compromised, conscienceless “politicians” protect them?
As developers bury us in concrete, we don’t have the luxury of getting away from it all by buying some beautiful island of bliss abroad.
This pillage, combined with corruption everywhere, and the police authorities looking the other way to protect “political” criminals, with the opposition going on a very long, moral and political sabbatical, despite its occasional rhetoric, makes our situation truly dire. Who will fight our battles?
Our real hope lies with God, with ourselves, as we have to act, and with our courageous NGOs that are fighting against corruption and for political justice, together with environmental issues, despite the odds.
Heartfelt thanks to all of them. May we all rise to the occasion like they are doing.
Carmel Zammit – Naxxar
Strickland House
The discovery of what look like cisterns at the site where Strickland House stood before it was demolished to make way for a new building development (‘Archaeological probe on site of old Times building’, July 16) is interesting.
According to sporadic references made in Lord Strickland’s papers, the original building that once stood there in the time of the Order of St John was known as the house, or palace, of the fountains. If the new find is confirmed, it will back up Strickland’s references.
Well before the war, Strickland had one of the wells (or was it perhaps a cistern?) drained of all the water and connected by two tunnels, going down some 30 feet into the rock. It was converted into a shelter that could easily take 300 people. At the height of the war, some of the workers preferred working in the shelter than in the building.
Victor Denaro makes no reference to the original building in his book Houses of Valletta and the reason for this is that, in comparison with other streets in Valletta, very few records could be traced relating to the houses built in St Paul Street and St Ursola Street.
Denaro explains that this was perhaps due to the fact that most of the buildings in these streets belonged to private families who had kept no records of their property.
Progress Press moved from its first printing house in Republic Street to St Paul Street in 1931, taking over a building that had been built in 1910 and was used as a cigarette-making factory by Constantine Colombos, who had started the business in 1868.
The firm, established in Cairo, had agencies in countries throughout the world and, at its peak, employed 250 workers at its factory in Strada San Paolo. It made some 50,000,000 cigarettes a year.
Strickland House was bought for Mabel Strickland, Lord Strickland’s third daughter, out of a loan of £5,564. 18s.6d, provided by Margaret, Strickland’s second wife, who had inherited a great deal of money from her brother.
Lady Strickland’s family was in the newspaper publishing business in Britain. By 1948, the value of Strickland House was estimated by E. England Sant Fournier at £22,000.
Victor Aquilina – Attard
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