Decrepit Valletta buildings

Many buildings in our capital city are abandoned and in an advanced state of dilapidation. Many have other buildings above them, beneath them, adjacent to them or in some manner connected to them. If one of these buildings collapses, and years of non-use and lack of maintenance are making this more likely, the results would be catastrophic.

Then, one imagines, our politicians and local councillors would wake up, with the usual idiotic hullabaloo as they normally do on such occasions to hide the fact that they did nothing about a foreseen situation before it is too late.

Valletta residents are aware of how ominous this possibility is. On one occasion I confronted a prominent councillor. The stereotyped reply was that if there was no report, there was nothing to act upon.

Filing a report in this country ends up with so much red tape that many citizens just end up leaving it to fate. Hence the following suggestion that should be taken up by the Valletta council and perhaps copied by other local councils with identical issues, such as those in the Three Cities:

A register should be made available at the local council offices for residents to register immovable properties that are considered to be in danger of collapse, indicating the address and details of who the owners might be. Naturally the registrations should be thoroughly followed up by the council. It would then be up to the latter to report to the residents within six months about the outcome of the investigations and what remedial action is being taken.

This should be the first step to alleviate the apprehensions of citizens that their local council is indeed doing something to protect them from the threat posed by decrepit buildings.