Bank queues

Day in, day out, I see long queues waiting outside banks. I observe that the majority are elderly people. I have more than once spoken to some of them, getting to know that most of them are not familiar with the use of ATMs.

Would it not be a good idea if our banks got together and put up a TV programme explaining, in simple language, the use of these machines?

I am sure this measure would be a blessing for our elderly and not-so-elderly brethren.

Paul Xuereb – Balzan

On the road to environmental hell

Protecting the environment is paramount because once an area is built, the act is irreversible. Photo: Shutterstock.com

What matters most in Malta is the protection of the natural environment and how construction is impacting the visual aspect of our living environments.

Everywhere in the world, humans are encroaching on the natural habitats. Tropical rain forests are disappearing fast. During an interview, Jane Goodall said chimpanzees are threatened in Africa because the tropical rain forest belt which once girded the whole of Africa has become greatly fragmented.

In Malta, this is also apparently accelerating. It matters most to protect because once an area is built, the act is irreversible. Greylisting comes and goes, our fortunes regarding the economy increase and then dwindle but the destruction of the natural environment in Malta and the change beyond recognition of our living environments is happening very fast and always in one direction.

So it is not acceptable that the planning laws are loaded in favour of the developers. The latter have many things in their favour: the law which permits development that looks out of place in our villages and destroys the skyline and money with which they can get the best experts. And, every day, we are seeing a web of corruption emerging which cloaks everything.

The EU is not interested in protecting our natural environment because it is an internal problem. The NGOs which are fighting to protect the natural environment do not have enough resources. Alternattiva Demokratika has become tired and seems to have relinquished the fight. Birdlife is happy to only defend its patch: the nature reserves it manages and continuing its fight against hunters, when many more birds are being killed by intensive farming, the destruction of the natural environment and light pollution. Collaborating with hunters who obey the law may lead to bigger and better results.

It is not acceptable that the President of Malta only talked against development when they were about to start building an apartment block in his street.

So it is up to you, the citizen, to stand up and be counted. Use your vote to change this road to environmental hell. Make pressure on your traditional political party to change their policies. Labour does not seem to be changing tack. And the Nationalist Party seems to use the environment as a catchphrase; but its policies are the same as Labour’s. It only talks about recreational spaces for families and nothing else and is in favour of intensive farming.

Make it known to them that this issue is a priority for you. Or vote for people who will surely work to change the planning laws. Even if we do not succeed, at least we will not be responsible for this waste.

Joe Portelli – Nadur

True prayer demands humility

Recently, the Holy Spirit taught me this: “The real please is when I am on my knees.” Is my prayer humble or pretensive? Is not humility an essential ingredient of my prayer?

Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap – Marsa

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