Editorial

At long last, the government looks resolute in addressing its long-neglected duty of reclaiming land that rightly belongs to the public.

The Parliamentary Secretary for Revenue and Land, Jason Azzopardi, who is responsible for the Government Property Division within the Ministry of Finance, is showing he means business and is determined to upgrade a system that has been lying dormant for many years.

Under the leadership of the division's recently-appointed director general-designate, Paul Miruzzi, the first small steps in the right direction are being taken in order to ensure that government property is not abused.

The GPD has embarked on an enforcement campaign by clamping down on catering outlets that clutter public pavements with street furniture. The newly set-up unit has also started evicting squatters from government buildings, removed illegal billboards and served eviction notices on some 100 caravans at a site in Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq, insisting that this was not an official campsite and constituted abuse of public land. This was taken a step further on Friday when the structures started being cleared by the division and Mepa.

These signs of Caesar waking up to his long-neglected duties are being greeted by public opinion with relief. The expectations are now high. For years, various people and NGOs have been drawing the government's attention to the crying need to have an upgraded and clear exposition of which properties belong to the public.

Over the years, too many individuals have brazenly commandeered government property, making it their own to the detriment of everybody else. In a small overpopulated island with a rapidly diminishing open space, the crass dereliction of the government to rectify this unacceptable situation was shameful.

It is even more shameful when one recalls the many instances when the authorities had cold feet in the face of blatant abuse and/or misuse of public property such as the sealing off to the public of long stretches of foreshore and vast publicly-owned areas in the countryside.

The successes scored so far by the GPD can mainly be attributed to the determination of Dr Azzopardi and the small but dedicated team of people at the division.

Unless it wants to be accused of only deciding to act now that the general election is over and that it is doing so to alienate the people from other more serious issues, the government must ensure that the division has all the necessary tools and funds it needs. This is indeed a Herculean task and the government as a whole must be seen to be backing this effort, including by warding off forcefully any attempts at arm-twisting or, worse, blackmail of whatever type. More importantly, it has to ensure that all squatters and defaulters are treated equally whatever the abuse and irrespective of the area in question.

There is no need pointing out that the effective management of government property is also a source of a considerable amount of revenue.

When considering that the government had failed to upgrade the registration of its immovable property and had also failed to collect rents that are its due, the government cannot be seen to be quibbling about making the necessary investment in an organisation that should earn it millions of euro.

The long-suffering public expects that the government follows through its commitment and fulfils its neglected responsibility by living up to the highly-commendable mission statement of the GPD.

The efforts of Dr Azzopardi and his team have the full support of public opinion.