On the Dot...

About a month ago, Industrial Parks Limited staff were seen cleaning the area around a factory in the vicinity of the Vittoriosa Lawn Tennis Club, at Corradino industrial estate. Rubbish was collected in small heaps at regular intervals to be picked up by a truck later... only the truck never turned up for days on end. Most of the heaps were eventually removed by public-spirited members of the nearby sport clubs but the one in the picture was apparently overlooked. It was removed the day after this photo was taken. This is not the first time that such a practice has been noticed in this area.

Cave Mien

Ghar Lapsi is supposed to be a tourist attraction mesmerising visitors with the combination of rocky terrain and sea. However, lately the area has been allowed to go to wrack and ruin. Filthy water is to be seen running down to the sea, where it turns the water murky. Moreover, boulders and other debris from the works in hand are strewn along the road, and the bay is now a murky mess for at least 100 metres from the shoreline.

Step Up

The hot weather allows people to extend their swimming season farther than would usually be the case. However, it would appear that the Sliema local council is trying to thwart this healthy habit. After all the commotion about getting ladders placed at Ghar id-Dud, they finally appeared. Now that summer is officially, but not actually, over, they have been removed. This is ridiculous.

Cruising On

Cruise liner passengers now have a direct bus service to Valletta. They appear to be luckier than Marsascala residents who attend Junior College and the University. These still have no shuttle service, and they have to trudge daily to their place of studies by using two buses, returning home much later than their peers. This, despite the fact that Marsascala has the highest percentage of tertiary education students in the southern area of Malta.

Green Issue

A college in Vermont is using cow manure to generate energy. On a much smaller scale, ITS, in a collaboration with Wasteserv, has installed a plant wherein organic waste is turned into compost. Actions like this start the ball rolling, eventually growing big trees from little acorns.

Bad Example

A lenient suspended prison sentence of a year for being in possession of child pornography and a sentence of 10 years for sexually abusing two children, as meted out recently by the law courts, are sending the wrong message. Chid abuse of any type is a very serious crime and every punishment must fit the crime.

Net Profits

Now that the Mater Dei Hospital software bidder has revealed his sell-out intentions, it's time for everyone to put on a thinking cap. Perhaps the time has come to include a clause in contracts whereby this sort of manoeuvring is specifically disallowed. Anyone who intends to do this must only be allowed to do so after a set period, failing which he must pay a fine.

Post Haste

The home delivery service for parcels and packages is something people appreciate because it could be that going to a post office branches could be fraught with difficulties. However, when the world is an oyster, does it make sense that parcels from EU countries, even though they may be large, are delivered whereas tiny packages from non-EU countries have to be called for, sometimes necessitating two bus rides?

Waiting Game

Some schools still practise the unpleasant method of keeping children in detention for misdemeanours such as not having taken books to school or not having done homework. This means that, where transport is available, it would be missed. Some children are subscribed to transport because they live too far away from school to take a bus. Alternatively, a parent or carer would have to take time off work to fetch the children home. This makes no sense whatsoever.

Stone Cold

The edge of the pavement in Indri Cilia Street, Hamrun, on the scouts headquarters side, is rounded, perhaps in an effort to avoid accidents happening. However, buses on the way to St Luke's Hospital find this particular stretch very difficult to negotiate because of the sharp bend necessitated by the roundabout and the parking of vehicles in the area.