Mepa and the god of small things

M epa, its affairs and goings on are an ever-present topic in the written media, and rarely far away from the radio and TV news bulletins. Criticism of the authority peaked at the political level on the eve of the general election, because of the proposed development of land at Mistra owned by Nationalist MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orland, and the way the application was handled. That aside, controversy and criticism concerning Mepa were so strong that Lawrence Gonzi undertook, if re-elected Prime Minister, to take the authority under his personal responsibility. He was elected and he did just that.

Dr Gonzi took off slowly, preferring to probe and to listen. Work was going on off stage, to build a team of advisers and make calculations. When he acted, the PM did not do so dramatically. He made expected personnel changes, appointing a new chairman - this time dubbed executive chairman, a change whose operational implications may not have been seen clearly enough as yet.

The PM also received a high-powered report by a think, tank, which could be an important input to the way he chooses to propel Mepa forward. Legislative amendments are in the pipeline. The implied and expected structural change has so far been overshadowed by the developments regarding the Mistra case.

There remains the sad spectacle of Dr Pullicino Orlando, cleared, as expected, from illegality but still mired in the way he handled the pre and post election comments about the affair.

Every time he speaks out he shows he is his own worst enemy. Last week the matter culminated in Mepa revoking the outline Mistra permit it had itself issued. That still leaves three men to answer charges in court, and when they do, what they have to say could well continue to dilute focus from whatever is being done to restructure Mepa and the way it operates.

Meanwhile, the show will go on. Fresh mistakes will be made. For instance, if it is true that Mepa stopped adverts in the MaltaToday newspaper after its editor criticised the appointment of the executive chairman, that decision had better be reversed. Going forward, Mepa has to concentrate on doing things better, not on taking offence.

Doing things better does not have to wait for the promised extensive structural reform and for new legislation. There are basic factors to tackle without delay.

The first one is to undertake to be consistent in taking decisions. Over the years that has been one of the failures of Mepa.

The second factor is to remove the requirement for applications for permits for internal alterations that should not require the authority's involvement, but can be left within the applying architect's competence and responsibility. Such applications do not usually take long to process, but still take up time unnecessarily. That is so particularly in the context of the third factor.

Which is that Mepa has a backlog of applications and nobody is telling the public how it will be tackled. The summer months could add to it.

Mepa is not mostly about big projects and controversies, about suspicion of illicit dealings, scratching of backs and tickling of palms. It is about a reality that thousands of people experience, very often subjected to unnecessary frustration and not infrequently to unfairness as well.

Prime Minister Gonzi would do well to take his time to propose detailed reforms, and to listen to what the opposition will have to say about them, so that he can take on valid proposals.

Meanwhile, life has to go on at a much faster pace than it is doing at present within Mepa in areas where what should be required is a prayer to the god of small things, and not the fashioning of some miracle.