GRTU directs members not to to pay portion of their power bills

M. Mizzi

Oct 25th 2008, 07:45

This is not a political issue. We have no reason to believe that if Labour and Muscat were in power for the last two terms they would have solved the energy problems this country is facing. We have never heard their concrete proposals so nobody can seriously claim that they would have been better so I think we should keep politics out of this.

GRTU's argument is not that industries in need of assistance should not be helped out. GRTU believes that they should not receive aid at the expense of SMEs or the consumer. Picture this scenario for example: A hotel with a jewelery shop on the premises was benefiting from capping of its bills, and a jewelery shop in Valletta that does not have any capping at all. How is that fair ? You can apply this example to many other areas such as an entertainment venue at a hotel and one in Paceville. Cross subsidization is illegal in the European Union. The latest tariffs are still based on the this premise although the capping is now hidden in the new tariffs.

Nigel Lawrence

Oct 25th 2008, 04:45

GRTU directs members not to to pay portion of their power bills----

And if in response, Enemalta decides not to supply a portion of the members power supply? Could be interesting.

Michael A. Vella

Oct 24th 2008, 23:58

@George Cardona:"Let's all show the Government that we Maltese will not be trampled upon and that the social aspect in this matter takes topmost priority."

When are you and your ilk ever going to work out that, at the end of the day, it is "the people" who will have to meet the costs involved. Cancelling or postponing the tariff increase, without any compensatory cut in public services or increase in taxation - or both, simply translates to a higher deficit and added interest payments that must still be met through eventual higher taxation/tariffs that you and the rest of us would have to meet.
If one may quote Confucious on this - Confucious he say "Your argument, like train no wheels, take you nowhere."
As to the whining by GRTU, one does not see why shop owners do even bother to open shop if the few odd extra Euro per week in power tariff is set to wipe out their entire profit and push them into the red - come off it. Grow up. Say hello to the real world. Its too long overdue.

Keith Davis

Oct 24th 2008, 19:47

Consumers Pay! I am fully against subsidies. Subsidies are covered by present and future taxes. This means you pay for others or others pay for you, thats not fair!
I want to fully pay what I consume, no less, no more.

michaej fenech

Oct 24th 2008, 19:00

@J.Farrugia.
Mr. Farrugia, I left Malta in 1965 when it just happened that at the time there was a PN GOVERNMENT as well. It's funny but even than the PN apologists use to tell us (just like you did) if you can't take the heat to immigrate to another country, lot of us did because with the PN in governmet we had no choice, well most of us did not come back as you are suggesting.
Mr. Farrugia i don't know you from adam but from the way you talk I'm sure that you never lived or worked out side of Malta.

By the way it will take more than a MIRACLE no matter who's in government to fix the MASS the PN has put Malta in the last 25 years

George Cardona

Oct 24th 2008, 18:55

Way to go, GRTU. Now join up with the GWU and whoever else has Maltese blood running in his veins and organise a huge protest march against the imposition of these anti-social measures. Let's all show the Government that we Maltese will not be trampled upon and that the social aspect in this matter takes topmost priority.

Duncan Sant

Oct 24th 2008, 18:31

Dear Keith Davies

It is very difficult to be positive these days.

Marsa power station was supposed to have closed down a long time ago, yet it is still open and inefficient as it was 20 years ago. Should we pay for those inefficiencies? NO

This morning while driving to work, I noticed that at 8.15am the road lights leading from the Old Airport Terminal all the way to the ENEMALTA office in Luqa where all switched on. I call that a WASTE of electricity. Who pays for that waste? US.

The price of crude oil today went down to $67. About 3 months ago we were promised that if the price of oil went down to below $85 the surcharge would be lowered. I beleive the government already knew 3 months ago that the subsidies were to be removed, yet they made a promise which THEY KNEW THEY WOULDN'T KEEP!. This is the government we have, a government that tries to make a fool out of the citizens....and that means that the government is BETRAYING THE MALTESE CITIZENS OF EVERY POLITICAL BELIEF.

Keith Davis

Oct 24th 2008, 18:25

Well said M.Demicoli, you are right.
I guess they did not wake up to realise that we will be heavily increasing our demand on energy every year!

edgar gatt

Oct 24th 2008, 18:25

You labour supporters who keep whining about this Government not having a majority, taking the country to ruins, ghaxs kbir, sejrin igibu il poplu tallab,etc,etc. really make me laugh . You cannot understand that these are the first few months of a 5 year period. Tax them now, and in a few years time people shall forget and vote PN again, especially with a disrupted party and a leader surrounded by ,let us put it kindly, not so popular politicians...........

M Demicoli

Oct 24th 2008, 18:15

Keith Davis:-

Keith - do you release when PN build Delimara power station is was supposed to substitute Marsa powerstation?!! That what PN used to say.

Now, we are back to square one - having PN saying that we need to raise money to close down Marsa. My answer to that is that you cannot close Marsa twice!!!

Keith Davis

Oct 24th 2008, 18:12

By any chance has anyone heard the MLP's proposals in regards of how the country should pay the total bill of fuel and also regarding when the Marsa Power stations closes, how would an MLP Governemnt fund an alternative? Dear MLP its very easy to cry and be negative (as usual) but only real men find real solutions!

l Galea

Oct 24th 2008, 18:08

a. Vassallo
You are wrong
The Constitution at the time provided that the party that had obtained the greatest number of seats was to govern.

Do you remember the situation in 1971 when the Nationalist Party called for a number of recounts on the 5th district since the MLP had obtained only a small number of votes more than the PN in this district, notwithstanding that it had a very good majority of first-count votes in the whole of Malta?

The PN would have governed had it got a few more votes than the MLP in the 5th district notwithstanding that it had a minority of votes.

It was only the MLP that amended the Constitution so that if the number of votes did not reflected the number of candidates elected the party getting more votes will have a number of candidates to have a majority.

So do you want us to believe that when something is done by the PN it is ok and if the same thing is done by the MLP it is wrong?

Tell it to the marines Mr Vassallo

Try as you may you cannot change history.

Jason Grech

Oct 24th 2008, 18:04

To me, as much as MLP did 5 years extra and unnecessary in government between 1981 and 1986, this period under PN is looking very much the same as that period.

The damage to the economy that will happen under these 5 years, will take us a lot of time to recover from it. It is obvious that PN has lost the ability to govern.

Manuel Micallef

Oct 24th 2008, 18:00

To J Farrugia:-

No Actually PN was not voted in by the majoirty of votes. It was voted in by a minority of votes. (MLP + AD votes where over 50%). But since the law here that a small party such as AD without parliamentary representation cannot for a coalition government, then by default PN was elected in government.

That said, the law is the law - and PN is now governing the country.

Keith Davis

Oct 24th 2008, 17:52

To all who want to play ignoarnt.
1) The government has paid for high fuel prices at that time, which fuel we still have to consume.
2) By the time we will be posting our new order for fuel no one will know if the price would have spiralled back up or not.
3) In two years time we have to close Masra Power Station which has served its timespan and which is a total relic. Therefore we need a sum of money to seek an alternative!
Subsidies must be removed from all utilities, you know why? because we are paying subsidies in taxes later in the day!!! Thats unfair becuase you are not paying what you consume but you are paying waht others consume or the other way round!

Gerald Fenech

Oct 24th 2008, 17:47

grtU are right to protest. Anyway this shifting of capping from consumers to SME's is still illegal in the EU 's eyes and will get shot down. I can't believe how the government thinks it can continue taking anyone for a ride. All of a sudden they found 60 million Euro in 2 weeks. What a joke!

a. Vassallo

Oct 24th 2008, 17:40

@ Toni Stellini

So as far as you are concerned, the problem that we have is that we have a government who has lost the people's trust and because the same government does not have the absolute majority but only a relative majority.

How about if you have a government (MLP) that never enjoyed the people's trust and that the same government (MLP) rules your country having only minority support with the absolute majority of the Maltese people against the government (MLP).

THAT WAS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN DECEMBER 1981 AND MAY 1987. IT WAS NEAR ENOUGH A DICTATORSHIP. LEST WE ALL FORGET.

J Farrugia

Oct 24th 2008, 17:35

While acknowledging that increases are increases, those who cannot stand the heat, are welcome to go to any other country they wish to go. And then return and tell us about life in these countries. And whether you like it or not, it is the people who vote governments in, and not mr X or Mr Y. ANd the PN government was voted in by the majority of votes. Even though it only has a relative majority. But it is still the major party which the Maltese people wanted them to govern,. So instead of 'gemgeming', tell the LAbour party to try and obtain the people's trust so that in the next election (2013) the same Maltese people will vote them in, and we will see the miracles. That is democracy.

patrick mifsud

Oct 24th 2008, 17:33

remember when KMB asked the same thing to the labourites? who ended up paying the bills? the same people that responded yes to this request. so be careful what decisions to take whether to pay or not. at the end no GRTU will pay your bill but you and only you. Watch Out. i know people who spent three years paying high bills because of the arrears. il-malti jghid parir hudu anke minghand hmar. in this case i am the latter

M.Bezzina

Oct 24th 2008, 17:27

Cannot understand how the fuel prices went down and here prices remained the same!!Can you explain?Because when the oil rise up the government is the 1st one to announce that the fuel surcharge increases!!
Yes its getting boring living here!!

Joseph Borg

Oct 24th 2008, 17:26

Biex inkompli maghkom il-hsara li ha ssir lil dan il-pajjiz fil-5 snin li gejjin hija bla qies u jridu jghaddu hafna u hafna snin wara biex terga titranga.
Dal-5 snin huma zejda ghal dan il-gvern u sfurzati. Qeghdin hemm ghax bilfors u minghajr ma jafu kif. Qed nisthajjilhom il-5 snin zejda li kien ghamel il-MLP bejn l-1981 u l-1986. U kulhadd jaf il-konsegwenzji avolja almenu ma kienx hawn din l-arroganza kollha. Bazuzlizmu iva imma arroganza ma kienx hawn.

Toni stellini

Oct 24th 2008, 17:02

Xi dwejjaq waqa fuq dan il-pajjiz!!!

Se jgibu l'poplu tallab!!!

Din hija il-probelma meta jkollok gvern bla fiducja tal-poplu u bla maggoranza assoluta.

John Debattista

Oct 24th 2008, 17:02

@ Bayron Did you think otherwise my friend ?

Byron Camilleri

Oct 24th 2008, 16:52

It seems that everyone is considering Austin Gatt's statements as lies!