Open manhole

I refer to Philip Aquilina's letter (August 30) regarding an open manhole in Mosta.

The manhole in Triq Patri Guzè Delia c/w Triq il-Missjunarji Maltin is part of the works done in the construction of the arterial road between Mosta and Rabat, with the help of the Italian Protocol.

It is true that Mosta local council is very busy with Mosta Square but I would like to inform Mr Aquilina that the council and I on different occasions tried to rectify the situation. The handyman of the Mosta local council took immediate action to remove the danger by placing an adequate cover.

Unfortunately, this temporary cover was immediately stolen. We reported the missing manhole by the workflow system which channels the complaint to the responsible department. I e-mailed the architect responsible for the works who answered that the manhole had been stolen again and that he was addressing the request to ADT as the competent authority. I even spoke to the contractor's project manager who said that they had completed the works and were no longer responsible for the site.

It would have been appreciated if Mr Aquilina had verified the true facts prior to his going to print. I assure Mr Aquilina that the council is doing its utmost to make Mosta a better place.