Is Mepa truly protecting the Knights' old armoury?

The Fondazzjoni Ulied Ħal Qormi (FUQ) is very disappointed at the inaccuracies which were published in the article Old Armoury Extension To Be Preserved And Restored (July 2) with regard to what was said during the media conference held on Saturday, June 27, on site. Officials of NGOs Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar and Fondazzjoni Ulied Ħal Qormi explained in detail the various applications submitted for the site and their effect on the site where the arched remissi (garages) of the 17th century property adjacent to the armoury built by the Knights once stood.

This article has confirmed even more the need to speak up, as via this article it was brought to light that Mepa has not only disregarded the recommendation issued by the Heritage Superintendence in 2005, to list and protect this highly historical building, but has also offended the whole Maltese nation by binding the developer by a mere €1,870 if damage results to the building.

Any responsible citizen would ask if such an invaluable and unique heritage is worth this pittance! Definitely, this condition set by Mepa is an insult to us all.

The foundation takes this opportunity to ask Mepa whether it has taken action against the person who was responsible for pulling down the original wall which surrounded the property for nearly 400 years, the façade of the original arched remissi and the remissi themselves, the spiral staircase which led to the upper part of the property and the coat of arms which stood on the main door of the remaining hall, among other architectural features which have disappeared.

The Mepa spokesman in the article stated that nobody had filed an objection against the development despite the planning application being made public on the website and advertised in the media along with the site notice.

It conveniently went unmentioned that this property was surrounded by a thick wall of about a storey-and-half in height, and nobody passing by could see what was happening on the other side of it. It was only when the wall was pulled down, together with the arched remissi, that passers-by could see the remains of the historical building and the scandalous damage that was done to the property.

Moreover, are we to understand from the statement of the Mepa spokesman, that if there are no objections to an application by the general public then Mepa feels justified in allowing the demolition of a property even when such property had been recommended for an adequate level of scheduling by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage in 2005?

What would have been the outcome if such an objection had been made when Mepa ignored the recommendations of the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage as well as those of the Heritage Advisory Committee and the case officer's recommendation to refuse permission?

It is also ridiculous that the information given by Mepa in the article states that it ordered the developer to keep an open space of 20 feet between the flats and the hall and include a garden in his plans, when a very recent development next to the property is not even one foot away.

It was also stated that Mepa's Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee carried out an on-site visit and recommended its preservation. FUQ would like to invite this committee to conduct another on-site inspection to see for itself the ruin and the damage that has already been caused.

It is a pity that so much of Malta's heritage has fallen into such insensitive hands and it is no wonder that so many Maltese citizens have lost all their trust in this institution, which is supposed to be there to protect the heritage and environment of the Maltese islands in all their aspects and not to further its destruction by its ambiguous and inconsistent decisions.