Sliema hospital

Eddie Aquilina (Hospital Development, February 9) ended his letter with a plea for me to leave Sliema alone. I imagine he has asked the same of all those who have left Sliema in shambles and with no obvious benefit to the residents, but perhaps I missed those letters.

My original project was to build a hospital in the degraded south in order to give its second-class citizens dignified treatment in an up-to-date private hospital. This is still my heart-felt desire. However, despite the government's oft-repeated declaration in favour of health tourism together with its appeals for entrepreneurial creativity, there is a lack of incentives in the health sector.

Back to my being told to stay away from Sliema and concentrate elsewhere. The Malta Environment and Planning Authority sat for a long, long time on my application to build a hospital in the Zabbar/Zejtun area and it was only when I shouldered the not inconsiderable burden of buying Capua Hospital did the authority finally sit up. A few days after the sale was effected and announced, Mepa issued the necessary permits for which I had long been pushing.

Mr Aquilina can draw his own conclusions.

One final thought. The St James (Capua) Hospital employs 15 employees who were born, baptised, brought up and work and live in Sliema.