New consumer affairs Website

My son Matthew has completed the finishing touches of our Website (www.muscatinglott.net), which is now officially on-line. We launched it this weekend.

In the past ten years we improved our consumer awareness and orientation considerably. We must keep on moving forward and it is high time we started taking an interest in generic consumer issues. This is my umpteenth effort to drag us out of the cultural hole we dug ourselves in.

Culturally, we only take an interest in consumer affairs if we have a complaint. If we do not have a problem or a complaint to make, we are not interested. I have been trying to get us out of this dreaded cultural hole for the past ten years without success and I have no intention of giving up.

"Giving up" does not feature in my list of priorities. If we want to get our act together as consumers, we must break through this dreaded cultural barrier. I sincerely hope that, through this Website, we can break through. If not I hope that at least we can move a step closer towards taking a genuine interest in issues that affect all consumers.

In our new Website (www.muscatinglott.net) among other things, there is an interesting survey on toilet usability in entertainment establishments. We also went off the road, just a few metres away from civilisation, only to be faced with something we ought to stop. For the benefit of readers who are not on-line from time to time I shall feature, and refer to, various points and issues covered in the Website.

We shall have two regular contributors. They are friends and consumer affairs colleagues of mine - Benny Borg Bonello and Dr David Fabri. Both gentlemen have made and are still making a significant contribution in consumer affairs. Suffice it to say that Benny is the president of Malta's only consumer association, recognised by the Consumer Affairs Council.

Regarding David, he was the first lawyer who chose consumer legislation as the theme of his thesis and he has been directly involved in drafting our consumer laws. He also was a member of the official Maltese delegation in Brussels for Malta's screening process for Chapter 23 'Consumer and Health Protection' of the acquis communautaire. I know. I was there too.

You are welcome to visit www.muscatinglott.net.