A tale of giants and dwarfs

Everywhere around us picturesque houses of character and green pastures are giving way to grotesque multi-storey buildings. This adulteration of our country's heritage is not new to us. This has increasingly been taking place at an alarming rate over these last 10 to 15 years. This is happening in entertainment meccas and villages alike... St Julians (Portomaso), Tignè (Midi project), Qui-Si-Sana (Fort Cambridge project and Town Square), Sliema (Galaxy Complex project), Gzira (Midi Manoel Island project, Savoy Gardens and the multi-storey development to be developed near Gzira stadium), Paola (A3 Towers), Mistra Village (proposed four multi-storey buildings, including a 19-storey structure)... the list goes on and on.

Nowadays we can boast that we have a robust banking infrastructure, a state-of-the art brand new hospital, that we are close to becoming a world hub for excellence in information technology industries, and why not? We could turn Malta into a one-stop shop for foreign construction speculators as well!

Are we taking the appropriate safety measures when building these huge structures? Once upon a time, there was once a supermarket (Save On) in Paola. The ceiling collapsed on July 21, 1990. People died that day. Once upon a time, there was an apartment in St Paul's Bay. But on June 3, 2004, when the space adjacent to it was being excavated, the apartment collapsed. People died that day. Once upon a time, a building was being constructed in Hamrun. On April 17, 2007 the ceiling collapsed. People died that day.

These accidents left families without mothers, fathers, brothers, sons, uncles... I really must say that, as far as safety measures go, EU accession was indeed a God-sent to us! We are going from strength to strength in this area. Why don't we hold a pan-European congress on safety? Maybe we can name it How To Survive In The Construction Industry? Now, if a small earthquake hits our tiny island, can these multi-storey buildings, being erected all over Malta, resist the vibrations? Knowing the Maltese way of cutting corners when dealing with things, well...

I also have a suggestion to make to the planning authority. Over the past years, children used to hold kiting competitions. I suggest we start holding competitions for construction devices... perhaps the most brightly lit truck at night?

Imagine organising a carcade of illuminated excavators and other earth moving equipment during a cool summer night... If we also include a couple of hot dog sellers we could market the event as Notte Bianca On The Move.

I also have a suggestion to make to the Malta Tourism Authority. What about marketing each construction site as a unique abseiling experience? Imagine turning each crane in the 10,000 construction sites around Malta into an exciting abseiling adventure. We could even start advertising Malta in this respect. This would surely strengthen our Brand Malta advertising campaign.

One last point! Maybe it is only my impression, but have you noticed that the incidence of allergies, including hay fever, has increased this year. Certainly the lack of rain is a contributory factor but I am also sure the 10,000 construction sites had quite a say too!