EU celebrations

I refer to the letter about EU celebrations by correspondent Peter Montebello (April 12).

To my mind, when the then Ministry for Youth and the Arts became aware of the polemic about the proposed closure of four Floriana public gardens, Herbert Ganado Public Garden, KGV Playground, Sir Luigi Preziosi Garden and Vilhena Garden, the ministry should have been gentlemanly enough to admit that it had issued a tender/permit granting permission to the WelcomEurope consortium to padlock these four Floriana public gardens without having consulted Floriana local council about the matter. In fact, the Ministry for Youth and the Arts had granted permission to the consortium to prohibit anyone, and/or, everyone from entering any one of these four gardens with the exception of those guests who were to be hosted in them.

It was only subsequently, when the agreement had already been signed by all parties and after the tender had been issued, that Floriana council got to know about what was in the offing.

The council took notice of what was being prepared on March 26 when a news report about EU celebrations appeared in The Times.

In addition to the above, one can add that the Ministry for Youth and the Arts had committed another serious blunder because the ministry had never informed the WelcomEurope consortium that, in spite of the tender having been issued, the consortium was still obliged, according to law, to apply at the Floriana council for separate permits granting permission to the consortium to make exclusive use of certain (requested) public gardens. This with the exception of Herbert Ganado public garden which falls within the responsibility of the Ministry for Rural Affairs and the Environment and which is administered by the Department of Agriculture.

This is what Minister Jesmond Mugliett might say when, in future, he will again mention Floriana local council in the presence of other Nationalist Party candidates.