Council unresponsive to local concerns

Over the past three months I have written, and taken in by hand, three letters to the Naxxar local council regarding a largish rock garden which lies between two main roads in San Pawl tat-Tarġa. In the past this garden was cared for regularly and was a pleasure to see.

But earlier this year this changed, and except for two visits by a couple of half-hearted “gardeners” it has been totally neglected, and of course all sorts of rubbish now gets dumped there. To make matters worse, people have taken to walking their dogs through the garden and not cleaning up after them; in the hot weather this looked – and smelled – disgusting.

In my second letter to the council I asked three questions: (a) the name of the councillor responsible for SPTT; (b) what the gardening contractors were being paid to do (they are, after all, being paid with our – taxpayers’ – money. And if they are being paid, it’s for doing absolutely nothing); (c) whether the council would consider placing notices around the perimeter of the garden asking people to clean up after their dogs.

At the beginning of the month I finally received a brief e-mail giving me the name of the councillor responsible for SPTT and agreeing with me “that the situation is not acceptable” and stating they “have instructed the contractor to remedy as soon as possible”. As nothing was (or has yet been) done, I decided to try to meet with the councillor concerned, to discuss this matter and other things which need urgent attention in this area. I called in at the council offices on October 10 to make an appointment with her, but to date have not been contacted – just one more example of the bad manners, arrogance and incompetence of the Naxxar local council.