Jumping the queue

The indictment of the Pilatus Bank MLRO (money laundering reporting officer) is a step in the right direction. This MLRO has not been arraigned for pocketing of funds but for failing to carry out her duties diligently. This charge came ahead of other alleged previous wrongdoings but which are still under investigation. Looks like this is jumping the queue.

Now if this action is designed to look like the cleansing of the outside of the Maltese cup for the eyes of the FATF, when the inside of the cup has, for many years, been overflowing with cases of hard graft and corruption of those who made huge illicit fortunes on the back of public funds but are still allowed to run free, then we will not be able to move forward out of this climate of impunity we are in. Some of these investigations predate those of Pilatus Bank but are still not concluded.

Where is our Falcone or Borsellino? Until justice is seen to be done without further dragging of feet, this story will not go away. Until those criminals and frauds ‒ or. as the president called them. “the gang of people who brought shame on our country” ‒ are brought to justice, there will be no closure.

Our country is passing through social convulsions rarely experienced before. The way out now rests solely on the shoulders and integrity of Police Commissioner Angelo Gafà.

Joe Pace Ross – Sliema

Logistical nightmare

Crew should allow passengers enough space to be able to leave their cars. Photo: Jonathan Borg

I would like to commend Fiona Galea Debono on the excellent article ‘Gozo ferry doors locked’ (October 19) regarding the concern on passengers remaining in their vehicle during the crossing to and from Malta and Gozo. The concern is indeed valid and perhaps few are those who are aware of this peril.

As it happens, I was on the ferry to Gozo the day before, on October 18. With me was a friend who is severely limited in his movements.

A crew member frantically waved and guided us onto the boat and up the slipway. He kept insisting that I park close to and alongside the central railing on the left of my vehicle, four inches away in fact, so there was then no way that my passenger could disembark, as the door would only open a few inches.

I turned to complain to the crewman but, by that time, he had directed another vehicle to park on my right side, yet again other four inches away. So now I too could not get out!

And there we were, both doomed and well and truly ‘locked in’. Even if we could get out of the car (we couldn’t), vehicles were still being packed in so fast and so close to each other that,  if we had a wheelchair in the booth, the vehicle parked behind me was yet again another four inches away, leaving us with no option but to abandon the idea and stay in the car. What else?

The crewman disappeared, leaving a potential disaster made worse with his jam-packing of the vehicles. In many cases leaving little space for any corpulent and disabled passengers to leave their vehicles.

There were now no less than four lanes of vehicles along the whole length of the deck space with very little space between them either way. Some tourists had pushchairs in the boot and they could not access them as they could not even open their doors due to the proximity of other vehicles behind them.

So some, like us last week, reluctantly had to stay in their vehicles. Some with mobility problems, to boot.

I still believe that Galea Debono’s article deserves merit and attention. My issue concerns people with mobility problems who cannot get out of their vehicles thanks to the apparent current regime of jam-packing vehicles on the ferry.

Besides, what was the frantic hurry all about? If the crew had to insist that all passengers have to leave their vehicles, they would have had to disembark half the vehicles and park them again in a way that doors could be opened, disabled passengers or not.

Or, they could ask passengers to disembark from their vehicles before the vehicle is driven onto the ferry. But then the flow of vehicles will come to a halt to give passengers the chance to disembark and take their stuff with them. Pushchairs, wheelchairs and other paraphernalia included.

Either way, a potential and veritable logistical nightmare.

Jovin Rausi – Birkirkara

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