It's the politicians who need chopping, not the trees

I am sorry I missed the demonstration against the proposed development zones. Had I been in Malta, I would have been there. It is encouraging to see that more and more people will not stand by and let this government walk all over us. Although it is doing just that.

I was heartened, as I read the report of the rally on the back page of The Times of July 20, and amused by the well-chosen jibes "Gvern tal-gaffa" among them.

As to the "Get George Get Worried" poster, it is not only George we should be worried about. And we should be getting seriously worried when public opinion is ignored in this way.

What should be causing us even greater anxiety is the fact that there is no serious alternative (no real challenge) to the present administration; hence the insufferable arrogance. If the Labour Party wins the next election, they will do so by default.

Who else can we vote for to show discontent?

We would then have demos with posters saying: "Get Charles (Buhagiar) Get Worried".

It is not our trees that need chopping, but our politicians. Listening to the debate on the development zones in Parliament, on the car radio, I was incredulous at the hysterical tone of Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando (PN), someone I remember receiving a Nature Trust Environmental Award at the same time that I did.

The debate was a slanging match between the two parties; the kettle calling the pot black. The focus was that the MLP were using the free vote on the issue as a gimmick. Surprise, surprise, all the PN members voted for, and all the MLP against.

This country has become dangerously polarised, and I blame the political broadcasting stations for the escalation. I listened (on the radio again) with amazement to one station (101) saying that they need to increase their propaganda and that they will. And if they do, no doubt, Super One will not be left behind. Is that what broadcasting is about in this country? Propaganda?

Someone who was at the rally against the development zones complained that the Public Broadcasting Service news played the event down by not giving it the coverage it deserved. I am afraid I have stopped watching local television almost completely, and I listen to the local radio stations only while I am driving and cannot get Classic FM.

I was recently asked to be a judge on the forthcoming Broadcasting Awards. I declined because I think that our broadcasting needs to mature and improve drastically before it can merit any kind of award.

The first step towards that is to get rid of the political television and radio stations. The next is to free PBS from political control. But, of course, it will not happen under either a PN or an MLP administration.

Once political parties have got that controlling power, they are not likely to give it up.

But getting back to the environment. What kind of democracy do we live in when the landscape of our country is being changed completely without any serious consultation with the public.

So it is a fait accompli that the trees are to be removed from Castille. An article in The Times on Wednesday accepted this with the heading "No sign of where trees will go".

It is not a matter of where they will go. The point is they should stay.

Did we give this government carte blanche to do what it likes when we voted for it? I don't think so. Am I the only person to be outraged by this dictatorial behaviour?

For a while I thought I was the only one to be upset by the proposed act of state vandalism - stripping Castille of all its greenery and replacing it with stark space - and was ready to give up the fight. But I have since been meeting people, especially those who work, or have businesses, around Castille who are appalled by the proposed plans.

Two weeks ago (July 16), I wrote that the proposed design for Castille in Valletta was horrendous. The trees are beautiful. They provide an oasis of green and are an essential, important element to the visual impact of the place. What does the government want all that stark space for anyway? Is it delusions of grandeur with visions of a micro Red Square?

I have since only seen a couple of letters concurring with my view in The Times. One was from Anne Azzopardi-Preziosi of Lija, who had this to say: "It's extraordinary; we were only shown the proposal a few days ago and now 'they' (the government) are concerned about the trees... Why don't they do what they generally do? Chop them down.

"If the parliamentary decision declaring open season on practically all our remaining open spaces goes through on the nod (as it is expected to do), then there will be hundreds, if not thousands, of trees to be chopped down.

"What's a few more? And while they're at it, why don't they tarmac or build over the whole of what's left of Malta? We're nearly there, so they might as well get it all over and done with."

Since the letter was published, the development zones extension has gone through in Parliament.

The other was from Pauline Terr in London: "I have just read about plans to pedestrianise Castille Place, Valletta, and remove the palm trees. What is it about the Maltese love affair with concrete?

"Castille Place is one of the most attractive corners of Valletta and, yet, the authorities apparently want to destroy it. For first-time visitors entering from Floriana, the trees provide a charming vista.

"Time and again upon visiting Maltese towns we have remarked on how much better they would look with the addition of a few trees rather than huge swathes of the (obviously much loved) paving.

"Malta has few trees as it is; to remove several more from such a prominent position seems daft in the extreme..."

If you feel strongly about keeping the trees at Castille, send an e-mail back to me or drop me a line at The Times. By next week I will know if there is enough interest to start a petition.

Non sequitur

I was appalled to see an otherwise civilised letter, in The Times, decrying Zidane's head butt ending "...with people like Zidane, slum, slime and stench are never far from the surface". Such racist and classist language is simply unacceptable.