Equality through coercion

John Consiglio recounts (August 23) an amusing and enlightening incident in which a Swedish banker said his country disagreed with Dom Mintoff’s way of dealing with banks. Unlike Mintoff, he told the Maltese PM, Sweden let its banks manage freely but then taxed them ‘until the pips cried’.

Long ago, I read of similar disagreement. Mintoff, at the assembly of the Socialist International, had said he disagreed with Swedish socialism because it was too democratic.

He had said he believed that equality among people could not be brought about in a democratic way but only through coercion.

I was not interested in collecting references at the time. Now I wonder if anybody can verify and locate this frank ideological statement by vintage Mintoff.

Charles Pace – Birkirkara

Another victim of the system?

Photo: Jonathan Borg

I witnessed yet another mishap on the brand new Triq il-Wied, Iklin. This barely finished road was recently in the news after a motorcyclist was injured due to shoddy work on it. This time around, it was the turn of a pedestrian who stepped on one of the many kerbside flimsy manhole plastic covers. This caved in under the weight, injuring the poor, unsuspecting victim.

Is there no one who oversees the safety standards of infrastructural works? I approached a worker repairing the previous substandard iron water culvert covers a few meters away. He informed me that in this brand-new road he was constantly replacing broken culvert covers with the same flimsy plastic covers that cannot take the weight of a pedestrian. Does the contractor find that more sturdy metal covers would make too big a dent on his or her profits?

Is not this yet another instance of irresponsible, substandard, positively dangerous, unsupervised work not just on our shiny new roads but all over so many construction sites?

I tried to contact someone responsible for public safety to see into the matter. I started by calling the Naxxar police, for assistance, who directed me to Transport Malta. Seeing some TM security personnel nearby I tried my luck with them. They simply shrugged me off and referred me to their head office.

After a long wait on the phone, I finally got through to TM only to be redirected to Infrastructure Malta. Then, at IM, a pre-recorded automatic message invited me to leave a message.

In the meantime, I discovered other caved-in kerbside manhole covers that could not take the weight of passers-by, dangerously exposing gaping holes that are ready to cause more incidents and injuries.

Is this just another situation revealing the shoddiness caused by greedy contractors abetted by the irresponsibility and inefficiency of our work ethics, culture and administration?

When no one is responsible, all the rest are the victims.

Paul Chetcuti SJ – Birkirkara

Sliema’s former Regina Hotel site

The situation at the site of the former Regina Hotel in Sliema has become unacceptable and unbelievable, three years on since works began. 

The developers of the former Regina Hotel have excavated a very large site bordering two streets: High Street and Tower Road.

The part which irritates most of us Sliema residents is that the existing pavement had also been excavated, after which a makeshift pavement was temporarily construed, jutting out into Tower Road. One should witness the confusion when a bus stops to disembark or alight passengers bringing ensuing traffic to a halt.

How long  will it take before the authorities exert pressure on the developers to either remedy this situation or find an alternative solution?

I did not mention the stench emanating from the stagnant water accumulating with resultant mosquitoes.

Rosemary Pellegrini Petit – Sliema

Letters to the editor should be sent to editor@timesofmalta.com. Please include your full name, address and ID card number. The editor may disclose personal information to any person or entity seeking legal action on the basis of a published letter.