On the Dot...

Every so often, sections of the media - depending on their political leanings - focus upon one educational institution or another, in order to point out how much money is being spent upon its refurbishment, or how it has been left to rack and ruin. How about making sure that by the time the next scholastic year begins, all of them will have one basic amenity, i.e. access, for the disabled, to floors other than the ground one?

Buck benchers

In some countries, parents of children with different needs, as well as those who adopt two children or more, are entitled to benefits which amount to at least the minimum wage, this making it easier for them to leave their jobs and provide round-the-clock care for these dependants. Perhaps because ours is such a small country, the situation is vastly different. However, it would be a solace to many if expenses incurred in adoptions of local or foreign children were subsidised.

Foreign Affairs

In summer, door-to-door salespeople swarm all over the island. This year, people of foreign nationality appear to have made a comeback, selling the same products they used to peddle about 20 years ago. Does one have any recourse to the "cooling off" period envisaged against local agencies? What if these persons offload faulty goods, as they are known to have done years ago, and then scamper off back to their homeland.

Consumer Affair(s)

The Department of Consumer Affairs found in favour of someone who contacted them, but this person waited in vain for the other party to pay up. Upon contacting the department, the client was told that she would have to take the other person to court since he had failed to honour his obligations. Since this would probably cost more than the money owed, one wonders whether a decision in one's favour is ultimately worth anything.

Gambling Machines

The revived practice of getting people to chance winning a prize by trying to forecast the score, or the winners, of particular football matches, amounts to nothing less than gambling. No doubt, mobile telephony companies have seen a nice increase in profits, especially during the duration of the World Cup. One wonders how sedqa and other NGOs and agencies have not had anything to say about this.

Works abandoned

The contractor has dug up the pavement at the lower end of Riebu Well Street in Rabat, and abandoned the work because of industrial action at the Water Services Corporation. Why did he start the job in the first place - the action at the WSC started weeks ago.

Summer Loving

Summer Schools for children are a wonderful experience. However, the exorbitant prices charged for some of them makes parents wonder whether they are an integral part of get-rich-quick schemes by those who provide them. Whereas it is true that some entities have to pay for using premises, and providing amenities, treats, and educational outings, the fact remains that those looking for a fun-filled baby-sitting service for their children to compensate for the fact that they cannot be with them because of work commitments, are being milked by providers of this "service".

Mobile Telephony

How long does it take for Telecare telephone sets to self-indicate that they are faulty, at head office? The boon of having such a service is sometimes partly psychological. The minute the apparatus does not work as an ordinary telephone set, is exactly the minute when the subscriber panics, thinking that he will need emergency help and be unable to get it.

Heat Proof

The elderly and the infirm are urged to rest during the hours between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., and to drink plenty of water to combat the effects of the heat. Why is it, then, that activities, including outings, are specifically organised for them during that time period? Why is it that in some rest homes, there is a heavy atmosphere because fans or air-conditioning units are not adequate for the needs of the place?

Mark Seven

Encouraging youths and children to take part in competitions is all to the good. However, a good number of these are set during examination time, or when children have been told that attending school is no longer compulsory, since all that remains is the compilation of examination results. Moreover, peripatetic or regular art teachers may be reluctant to work on projects when not all the students of a particular class are present, and therefore able to take part.

Ship Shape

What are, actually, the new tariffs imposed by Gozo Channel Co.? Do they apply to all vehicles, and all passengers, or is it just that the company has arbitrarily decided to up the rates of vehicles that occupy more floor area on the ships? Listening to the news services and interview clips being broadcast on Super One Radio, one would easily be forgiven for thinking that the fares have been increased for all categories of passengers.