On the dot

• What is the point of ARMS Ltd having an e-mail address if not for people to use it to contact the company? If one sends in the meter reading via e-mail, the chances are that the stock reply will indicate that the “complaint has been registered”. It is, therefore, not surprising that the bill which follows will be an estimate and not one that corresponds to the readings sent. Incidentally, can the company explain what it means by the term “suggestment”, included in its correspondence?

Coinage

• The Central Bank of Malta has issued one gold and one silver coin with Auberge d’Italie as the subject. This has been done as part of the Europa Programme 2010; Cultural Heritage. The face value of the coins is €50 and €10 and they sell at €269 and €44 respectively. Philatelists would have appreciated it were a set of stamps issued, highlighting this historical edifice from different angles. Moreover, since the stamp set would have been less expensive than the coins, it would have reached a different and, perhaps, wider market.

Searching

• For the ordinary man in the street it may be a pity that whenever accidents such as boat wrecks or fireworks factory explosions occur, searches for survivors are called off soon after sunset. Human life is not something that may be put on hold as soon as the sun’s light no longer obtains, they rightly argue. Perhaps the relevant authorities, especially the Civil Protection Department, would publicly explain what lies behind such practice.

Energetic

• Following the comment in these columns about how a number of households had been cautious about applying for the subsidies offered for the purchase of photovoltaic panels, the public has been informed that there will be no further financial assistance offered from the state. As a kind of appeasement, however, those purchasing a solar water heater, whose average price stands at about €1,100, will still benefit from a subsidy of €560.

Pyrotechnics

• It took the death of a family to get the ball rolling with a view to appointing a board of inquiry to determine and identify the potential causes of the explosions at fireworks factories. It may be a case of too little, too late but, on the other hand, better late than never. Much of the credit must certainly go to Justice and Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici. He had the courage to address what, to many before him, was evidently an explosive situation.

Horsing

• Horses are again being taken for what passes for training around residential areas. To avoid the heat, the animals are driven through the streets as early as 5.30 a.m. This, happening at a period when people’s windows and balcony doors are mostly kept open, is yet again creating a nuisance.

Advertorials

• The Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism, Mario de Marco recently described Malta as a vast museum; an exhibition within itself. These words hark back to the time when Malta was described as the Navel of the World and the Jewel of the Mediterranean. One hopes that any tourism campaigns abroad will also focus on this and not merely concentrate on secondary attractions such as beaches and nightlife.

Monumental

• Faith, Civilisation and Valour – as depicted by the Great Siege monument, standing opposite the law courts in Republic Street, Valletta – have been given a new lease of life. This is another in the string of monuments and buildings being renovated or restored. Perhaps, one day, someone will take it in hand to remove the ugly dribbles of paint on the stones serving as a plinth for the Dante Alighieri monument at Floriana. These have been there for many, many years.

Protection

• Ambassador Joseph Licari, Malta’s Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, has signed the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, on behalf of the government. This makes Malta the eighth EU member state to ratify the convention. One hopes this convention, together with that for children’s rights, will be honoured to the hilt and that not one adult will, henceforth, fail to protect children by fearing to be a whistleblower.

Dusted

• All manner of materials – including tattered green netting used to contain dust on building sites or shield roofs from the sun – are used instead of thick strong tarpaulin to cover lorry loads of builders’ materials. A case in point was the truck driving along Qala Road and Mġarr Road towards Għajnsielem on September 4, at about 8 a.m. This vehicle, like others, left a trail of fine dust on the ground and a haze in the air. Is this not a case for wardens and traffic policemen to investigate?

Judgemental

• The impeccable Foreign Office credentials of a senior civil servant were kicked to the wayside on the strength of an accusation apparently made on the strength of hearsay. The public does not know, indeed, whether the official documents allegedly leaked to the media have at any time been exhibited by anyone who ought not to have them in his possession. We are told that investigations into the issue are still being undertaken. This effectively means the person in question has been judged guilty until proven innocent, rather than, as it ought to be, the other way around.

Medication

• It is good to see that the Maltese medical team led by Jonathan Joslin has won the best foreign team award in the European Emergency Medicine Championship held in Poland. Moreover, the team placed fourth overall. Such recognition goes a long way in putting people’s minds at rest when resorting to Mater Dei Hospital’s Emergency Department... in a real emergency.