Although he was highly and I think unfairly critical of me, about the sorry state of Triq il-Qaliet, I still feel obliged to thank Joe Mercieca for his contribution (April 14).

I do this because I am in full agreement with his protest. However, I do have to point out that Mr Mercieca is shooting at the wrong target by aiming at the local council.

Perhaps he does this because he is unaware of how a council performs and acts. I came to such a conclusion when he tried to ridicule me by writing that I am in the habit of blaming the government for Triq il-Qaliet when this road falls under the responsibility of the local council.

Resurfacing of Triq il-Qaliet in Marsascala will be carried out by the local council

I am going to do my best to clarify some misconceptions which our friend seems to hold about the matter of responsibility. It is true that Triq il-Qaliet is the council’s turf. However, when a road is distributory and therefore suffers a high rate of more than 70 per cent wear and tear, then Transport Malta is responsible for its upkeep, particularly where extensive patching works have to be done.

In such cases, the council is faced with two choices. It has either to file a judical protest with the Constitutional Court against Transport Malta and wait for the final verdict (God only knows when that will come), while the road remains in its present condition with the residents and their vehicles as innocent third parties. Or it has to fork out a sum of €40,000 for resurfacing works. Our council has opted for the second option so that our innocent third parties, that is the residents, will not suffer for years to come.

If Mr Mercieca had found some time to browse our quarterly magazine he would surely have read that by next week, Triq il-Qaliet will be resurfaced. I do hope that by the time readers see my answer to Mr Mercieca, the road surfacing would have been practically completed.