There is nothing, I believe, more beautiful in Malta and in Gozo than the majestic cliffs tracing the edge of our perimeters. When the going gets tough, I find that a walk on the Dingli cliffs or Mtaħleb or the Sannat cliffs puts things in perspective. Cliffs are majestic and grounding and simply gazing at the deep blue expanse ahead of them inspires fortitude and resilience.

For how long, though, will we be able to embrace the beauty of these idyllic reference points? Take the cliffscape of Sannat, for example. It’s in for a tragic overhaul. Soon, along the way to the edge of the cliffs, instead of farmland and countryside, we’ll have to feast our eyes on vast concrete high-rises: 125 apartments built by the construction magnate Joe Portelli, right next to the Natura 2000 site. And this with the blessing of the Planning Authority, the defender of the common good.

These flats – the ultimate definition of ħamallaġni – will spell the death knell to breathtaking beauty and the end of stopovers by protected seabirds which, for centuries, have been nesting on the Sannat cliff face. But do Gozitans care? Do any of us care anymore? I wonder.

I can almost hear Portelli, in his godfather-like voice, insist that these apartments will be far from a ħamallaġni, that they’ll be some wow-esque statement designed by some architectural god. For all I care, they could be built according to secret plans of Antoni Gaudi himself; anything that spits in the face of the common good is a show of greedy bling-bling and an ugly, permanent wound to the community.

We’ve completely run out of building spots on this microscopic island of ours and, still, our construction magnates sit on their millionaire’s chests like meerkats, always on the lookout to make more and more money, at the expense of our sanity. Soon, wherever we’ll turn our heads we’ll see nothing but characterless Buġibbas.

There is another aspect to this shameful approval by the Planning Authority. Now, more than ever before, we desperately need farmland. Food prices were already soaring because of COVID and the supply chain disruption the pandemic brought about. Now, because of Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine, prices are rocketing.

Russia and Ukraine produce roughly 30 per cent of all global wheat exports. Russia is, rightly so, crippled with sanctions, which means its produce is off limits. And Ukraine, one of the world’s main producers of corn, barley and sunflower oil, is wrecked by Putin. Also, all ports in the area of the Black Sea are shut and there’s mega disruption in shipping. Speak to retailers and they’ll tell you that, whereas in previous years cost of shipping rose more or less predictably by seven per cent in a year, it is now a hike of 20 per cent in a month. A month.

We desperately need to preserve farmland to sow crops, for without their land there will be no tomorrow for any of us- Kristina Chetcuti

Can you imagine what this will mean for us, an island that depends on imports for nearly everything, including grains, meats and vegetables? We are already spending the bulk of our salaries on food and household items, with barely anything left to save for a rainy day. What will next month be like?

I know all this is, uh, very ‘unpositive’ of me and shame on me for being so negative, etc, etc. But isn’t it now more important than ever to put an end to the haemorrhage of agricultural land?

Maltese farmers keep being threatened with eviction from land that their families have tilled for generations as they can’t afford the asking buying prices (often over a million euros). Many of them have been fighting evictions in court for the last three years. Farmers’ livelihood is being snuffed out and farmers are burnt out from fighting, fighting for our food on the table. And, bit by bit, their farmland – our source of nourishment – is now being morphed into a concrete jungle.

We should all join their plea, if for nothing because we desperately need to preserve farmland to sow crops, for without their land there will be no tomorrow for any of us.

Easter is a time for reflection. Perhaps the Planning Authority can reflect on its actual role as a guardian of the common good; perhaps our government can reflect on the urgency of curbing the annihilation of our countryside and invest in local produce and in farmland; and perhaps we can all make a spring resolution to support farmers and buy local as much as possible.

There’s another thing we can do in the meantime: take the time to go for a walk along the Sannat cliffs and experience the beauty while we still can.