Not fit for purpose
“I desperately tried to persuade Muscat (referring to former prime minister Joseph Muscat) to take immediate action the moment the Panama Papers were revealed but it was all in vain. He wouldn’t budge. He wanted to defend the interests of his friends, rather than the national interest”. This is what retired businessman Tony Zammit Cutajar wrote in Times of Malta (August 3) in his article ‘Still proud to be Maltese?’
Today, some years later, Malta has been greylisted by FATF due to the fact that, thanks to Muscat, the culture of impunity reigned.
The rule of law in Malta was not functioning.
Whatever wrong one did, the state was there to offer protection if one happened to be part of the corrupt inner circle.
Following the publication of the 400+ page public inquiry into the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, which confirmed what many had been fearing, Prime Minister Robert Abela decided to make an apology to her family. Is this enough? Certainly not.
No amount of apologies will bring her back.
No amount of apologies will eradicate this black page in our history.
One must not forget, also, that, for many years, Abela was legal adviser to Muscat and when he took over the premiership he promised continuity even though he knew what was going on in Castile.
No wonder Abela, although without success, tried to stop the inquiry. The result is shameful.
He was perfectly aware of what was going on during Muscat’s regime. But he never lifted a finger and shamelessly offered continuity.
Now, with Malta approaching a general election, who can vote Labour with a clear conscience and open eyes? Labour in power has proved to be a corrupt and dirty machine. Have a quick look at the ministers, parliamentary secretaries who resigned or were made to resign or, still, should resign and draw your own conclusions.
The Labour government has proved itself unfit for purpose.
Emily Barbaro-Sant – Mosta
Precious resource
My preferred fish is certainly the lampuka and I look forward to it every summer season. However, does it make sense anymore to throw away so much of our precious stone, which is a natural resource that will quickly disappear? Can we not find a way to use the enormous amount of stone we throw away in quarries or landfills? Surely it would be better to use this thrown-away material, creating artificial mountains rather than throw new masonry in the sea.
Ray Bondin – Għajnsielem
Thinking of others
It is astonishing to see persistent ignorance about the protection afforded by masks, in the face of rigorous global scientific fact.
Perhaps, given that most masks protect others, in the land of l-aqwa jien it is not so surprising that the concept of mutuality is an intellectual stretch too far.
Anna Micallef – Sliema
Name and shame
I refer to the letters by Gertrude Abela, John Pace, Henry Frendo, Doris Borg and others who are fed up with the inaction by the local councils and the central government when it comes to the state of our pavements.
I would like to make a suggestion to this newspaper, that it considers holding a competition, on a weekly basis, whereby the readers submit photographs and advise the location (to make sure that the local council responsible knows) of what the readers see as the best example of a dangerous pavement.
The editor can judge the best (worst) case and publish the photograph and advise its location. A follow-up by the newspaper with the person who made the submission after a few weeks (months) to see if the problem was resolved could be a gauge of which councils are the most effective.
Times of Malta could even consider ranking them after the surveys from good to bad (or bad to worse).
Gerry Burke – Mellieħa
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