Cry for reading material

William Zammit’s letter in Times (Hopes For New Chapter In Library Services, August 27) has my full support in most areas.

As a one-time head of the Public Library, I must however point out that today we are back in 1960 and not stuck somewhere in the 1960s.

The difference lies in the fact that soon after Malta gained independence in 1964, the British Council prevailed upon the Maltese government to establish a public library system. Their offer was finally accepted and the Central Public Library, stocked with £60,000 worth of British books, was opened at Beltissebħ in February 1973.

Book loans from the one central point behind police headquarters rose eightfold (from 64,000 to more than half a million) over the previous year; and we had no computers to help us then. The old district libraries were slowly rejuvenated and Malta was building a public library system to be proud of.

As the years rolled by the government poured more and more thousands of lire into books and school libraries were being furnished with the latest titles as well. Unfortunately, the good times came to an end, the watershed year being 1983!

Regarding professional staff in the public library, there was a time when the tendency was to remove those with a qualification to make way for those without.

We want children to read. To do so they must find suitable books in their school libraries. The Education Minister’s extremely laudable move to increase the book fund for the public library in 2010 needs to be followed up by some hard cash for schools which are crying out for reading material.