To what extent is it permissible to consider page 3 of the Times of Malta of December 11 as an early indication of a watershed?
It contains a report about a collective “quality of life” protest by the people of Sliema, St Julian’s and Gżira (inclusive of their democratically-elected local councils) as well as a report about a praiseworthy effort, by fellow academic Marie Briguglio and colleagues from our alma mater, to produce tangible data about our people’s quality of life.
The latter project has the support of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Anġlu Farrugia, and Pre-sident Emeritus Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca.
Why a watershed? Because when the people from a specific part of the country collectively and openly tell the authorities that they are sick to the nose of builders’ trucks, cranes, drillers, dust, noise and what not, then that collective area’s plea should not, on any altars of economic reasoning or politicking, be ignored.
The Sliema, St Julian’s and Gżira of our childhood are no longer recognisable. The argument being made is that this part of Malta must now be declared a “no further development” zone, where no more houses can or should be allowed to be brought down for flats, garages, shops, hotels, boutiques and whatever else – in short, a total stop to development.
The argument is simply to reduce, in size and influence, the developers’ activities and the government must be sensitive to the pleas of local residents.
Research will easily show that development moratoria in specific parts of a country are not exactly unknown in other countries.
There are other parts of Malta where development moratoria should also be considered. Qawra and St Paul’s Bay, Xlendi, Qala and elsewhere are replete with examples of projects eclipsing sun, views, fresh air and other elements that make for a decent quality of life.
The essential point, however, is the watershed argument: that the silent majority of our citizens have now collectively had it up to their nose with this so-called “development”.
And all of this under a Planning Authority that squirms, reels, finds holes, creates “policies” and whatever other subterfuges, always to condescend to the stratagems of builders, contractors, architects and general speculators.
Meanwhile, the environment authority, of course, remains the country’s biggest joke.
Like hunters, developers are an ever-hungry breed. Hydra-like, they thrive only on their own activity (and to hell with everyone else) and they are using all forms of political influence to keep on receiving approvals to their PA applications.
But the people now want a big increase in “noes” rather than approvals. And this is because the quality of life and well-being of our society – families, individuals, children – have been attacked to the point where breathing, driving, sleeping, strolling, enjoying a view and general quality of living are no longer possible.
When collective voices are ignored in a society, silent majorities grow and they often have the effect of showing their presence and their ignored pleas when least expected.
The majority “leave” vote in the UK’s Brexit, now rued and regretted by that country’s majority, had been there and growing silently for a long time.
Could something similar be happening in Malta on this big problem of suffocating development activity?
John Consiglio teaches in the Dept of Banking and Finance of the University of Malta.