Barking up the wrong tree

On September 8, Myriam Spiteri Debono made a passionate and courageous appeal for the Maltese to change tack and climb out of the rut they are in at the moment.

Almost two weeks later, Archbishop Charles Scicluna, when facing the country’s leaders in St John’s Co-Cathedral,  exploited the reading of St Paul’s exhortation to Timothy to highlight ‘the root of all evil’, the curse of greed that has crippled our society. Despite the shortness of his homily, he brilliantly and with utmost clarity encapsulated the dire situation we are in and appealed to us to be the masters of money, not its slaves.

Malta is living in very challenging times. Hardly ever before has our country succumbed to such a level of self-inflicted degradation.

We have made a mockery of the purpose of independence.

Freedom has even been abused to cripple the regulatory bodies that are meant to safeguard the common good and the environment. As the archbishop pointed out, the unbridled and corrosive construction industry has ruined our natural and architectural heritage irrevocably on the altar of Mammon. 

I was, therefore, shocked to read the headline report in this paper on the following day that gave a general portrayal of the Church in most negative terms implying it as hypocritical because it had sold unbuilt land in the heart of Għargħur. The overall impact of the story was to depict the archbishop as a person who says one thing and does another.

The facts are quite different. First of all, Times of Malta failed to state that two of the four plots that were sold were not owned by the Church. Secondly, the Church, like any other person or entity, has every right to sell its property as long as it respects the law. It is rather presumptuous to pretend that the Church should be denied this right. The Church, unlike the government, cannot tax people to fund its social and charitable activities. 

If this land is allowed to be developed or, rather, ruined with ghastly architecture, labelled as a ‘monstrous high-rise project’, the responsibility lies fairly and squarely at the feet of the environmental regulators that have repeatedly betrayed the common good. When attacking the Church, the residents of Għargħur are barking up the wrong tree.

In other words, if the green light is given for this hideous ‘development’ in Għargħur, it vindicates resoundingly the powerful homily delivered by the archbishop on Independence Day.

It confirms, if confirmation is necessary, that our country is enslaved by greed, abetted by a corrupt political class in government. It is a sad reflection on most Maltese.

Klaus Vella Bardon – Balzan

The real blame

Joseph Muscat allowed Konrad Mizzi (left) and Keith Schembri free rein in their doings.

Until it is proved otherwise, I believe Joseph Muscat unreservedly when he says his family had nothing to do with the company Egrant.

But the former prime minister cannot blame anyone of those believing otherwise for doing so. It was he who allowed Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi free rein in their doings.

And the Labour electorate in the districts which Mizzi contested was equally at fault when they voted for Mizzi, who had caused so much political damage to his party.

Robert Abela has the task now of restoring the Labour Party’s standing.

Roger Mifsud – Rabat

Construction noise

How can it possibly be legal for a developer of a site in a crowded urban area, adjacent to a residential block, occupied primarily by seniors, to create a noise nuisance that has been going on for several months?

The noise, which measures from 55dBA to over 60dBA from inside the adjacent block, is caused by drilling through concrete or concrete blocks. It generally starts just before 7.30am and goes on until around 4.30pm.

It is driving the neighbours to distraction.

Joseph Galea – Sliema

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