Where wardens dare!

On Good Friday, like many others, together with my family I went to visit one of the most beautiful Altar of Repose we have in Malta, the one at the cathedral in Mdina.

Arriving at Rabat/Mdina at about 11.45 a.m. one could easily see the huge influx of cars, vans, buses and tourist coaches. One could also notice the total traffic congestion and chaos near the Domus Romana. No traffic warden was anywhere to be seen then so as to control the passing traffic. He was somewhere else, I learnt later at my own expense. Obviously, there were no parking places anywhere to be found and you could see drivers like myself going round in circles trying to find one.

Like many others, I parked my car in a street going down towards Mtarfa from near the Mdina side gate in Triq l-Gharreqin. On walking towards Mdina, a traffic warden could be seen - he was not managing traffic, he was busily and happily dishing out tickets. A passer-by who spoke to the warden was heard telling him: "Even today, Good Friday, you hand out tickets". The warden's answer was: "Just because it is Good Friday do you expect to do anything you want?" Obviously not, is my answer to that.

On contacting the executive secretary of the Mdina local council, I was informed it is the Joint Office that sends out wardens to different places in Malta and Gozo and the local councils have nothing to do with it. But before the Joint Office, which is based in Birkirkara, sends out wardens who indiscriminately book people for parking contraventions, the Joint Office should first provide parking places even at a charge, when and where there is excess traffic going round, like on Good Friday.

To add insult to injury, later on in the afternoon, close to where my car was parked, a very insignificant car accident occurred. One of the wardens accused me of causing this accident. The traffic warden should have been in the same place, at the same time four weeks ago, when I suffered an attempted car theft. The culprit did not manage to steal my car only thanks to the alarm system I have and surely not thanks to any warden.

The Joint Office should be educating its wardens how to deal with people (try to teach them some customer care) and not let the wardens be arrogant with drivers. Let nobody forget we drivers are the wardens' clients.

One thing is for sure. Thanks to this warden's attitude, it is not the Joint Office that is going to lose out on this incident but the many catering and other establishments in Rabat and Mdina if people like myself decide not to go to Mdina and Rabat anymore.