Chasing cars in Marsascala

For me Marsascala is much more than the place I call home. It's an experience, a wonderful experience, a fusion of the zest of the younger generation that chose Marsascala as the place to set up their young family and the beauty of traditional Maltese custom, which still adorns the area, particularly in the older part of the village.

In the last years, the government has done very little to improve Marsascala and chose instead to channel all its energy to impose on the residents national projects that have a totally negative effect on the area, like the waste recycling plant and the fish farm industry.

Remember, for instance, the promise, made a few days before the local council elections, on the building of a state-of-the-art family park near the Park of Friendship? Or the declaration carried in the last two budget speeches that a marina will be set up in Marsascala?

These were all empty words and I pity all those who were led by the nose and believed them.

In the last years, Marsascala has been relegated from a tourism spot to a part-time entertainment area. From a village boasting the luxury of a four-star hotel, Marsascala now practically lives mainly on internal tourism and dies a natural death during the shoulder months.

Honestly, one of my greatest disappointments for Labour not being elected in the last general election by a margin of 700 voters lies in the fact that the plans that we had for the regeneration of Marsascala cannot be directly implemented and will have to wait for a maximum of five years to be driven home.

The government is its own worst enemy on the issue. Last year, in May, the Marsascala Business Community, a pro-active association spearheaded by a very professional person - Reuben Buttigieg - published a 10-page discussion document whereby it laid the basis upon which further ideas and projects could be identified for the salvation of Marsascala.

The effort is indeed admirable. The report delves into the plusses and minuses of Marsascala. It mentions, for instance, the fact that Marsascala is in itself a strategic location for the culture tourists - take the Neolithic temples, the Hypogeum, Blue Grotto, the Three Cities, Żejtun, Għar Dalam, Għar Ħasan and all the other sites of heritage and cultural importance, including sites which are in Marsascala itself.

It pinpoints the potential of building other niche markets apart from culture, like diving and watersports (say, the setting up of a Żonqor Sports Centre), hiking through the creation of pathways, the promotion of traditional Maltese entertainment by the sea on the same level as the Valletta Waterfront both in the harbour area and in the St Thomas Bay area and marine attractions by means of the provision of proper berthing for residents and foreigners alike.

One particular idea, for instance, is the suggestion that Xgħajra and Marsascala be joined together by means of an environment-friendly man-made promenade.

Such a project would provide the south with one of the most beautiful walks in the island. The report also suggests regional tax incentives in order to attract foreign investment in the area for the provision of bed stock (hotels).

It also lists some important issues that are not making Marsascala realise its full potential - on the forefront, the need to provide a proper bypass worthy of its name, which would make it an enjoyable drive to Marsascala and would make it closer to the other parts of the island. Other issues are the threat of flooding and the parking problem.

The value of this documents lies in the fact that it was drafted by the people who are directly involved in the everyday life of Marsascala. Had the government really nurtured an atom of genuine interest in Marsascala it would have jumped on the opportunity and immediately started a series of public debates on the points raised in the May 2007 report and charted a short- to long-term plan to implement the various recommendations.

More than a year has passed and absolutely nothing has been done by the central government to regenerate the gem of the south. Marsascala deserves much better!

Therefore, I hereby challenge the government to appoint an action committee tasked with the regeneration of Marsascala and having the May 2007 report as its groundbase for action. It has absolutely no excuses - the ideas are there, the willingness from all the actors in the field is there as well and the need for action is felt from top to bottom.

If the government decides to sit still and just forget us, Marsascala will have to spend another full five years chasing cars in its head in vain. I, for one, am not prepared to accept that.

Dr Bonnici is the opposition's spokesman on youth and culture.

owen@bonniciellul.com