Watch: 'I do not want towers in Gozo’: Alex Borg

Opposition leader Alex Borg has insisted that he does not want to see towers being built in Gozo, after appearing to suggest he was not against the idea during an interview last week. 

In an interview with whoswho.mt, Borg was asked whether he would support the development of a tower in Gozo, and whether he thought there should be zones in Gozo where they could be built.

The PN leader replied:  "You cannot generalise Gozo as a whole. There are places where there could be [towers] based on a skyline policy, and there are areas where there shouldn't be, for example, in village cores."  

Following the interview, Prime Minister Robert Abela, together with several Labour MPs, latched onto Borg’s reply. In an interview on Sunday, Abela said he was “shocked” by the Opposition leader’s response. 

In a video statement released on social media on Monday morning, Borg was more categorical.  

“Read my lips: I don’t want to see towers in Gozo,” he said, calling Abela’s comments a fabrication created to take the wind out of the Nationalist Party’s sails. 

“On the contrary, the skyline policy I proposed would ensure that this will not happen, and ensure that Malta and Gozo’s landscape is not dissonant. When you have a typical village with buildings of a certain height, the skyline should be respected and protected,” he said. 

'I understand Gozo's needs well'

Borg said that those who were panicking about PN’s resurgence suddenly cared about Gozo after neglecting it. 

“For me, Gozo is not simply a monthly photo opportunity. I understand Gozo’s needs well,” he said, urging Abela to take a trip to the island on the Nikolaos ferry, before visiting several other “monuments of Gozo’s neglect”, including the Gozo General Hospital. 

“He should ask Gozitans about the lack of basic healthcare facilities on the island that force them to travel to the mainland. And he should go to Xlendi and Marsalforn to see how much they [the government] are champions of planning, and to see whether it’s true that Gozo does not currently have any highrise buildings.” 

Earlier on Monday, a coalition of Gozitan NGOs slammed both Borg’s comments and the government’s response, calling the exchange an unfunny tragicomedy.  

“The Coalition for Gozo is sick and tired of all the petty politics being played out while Gozo burns,” the NGOs said.