When, earlier this month, the temperature suddenly soared to an unusual level, many rushed to the beaches, only to find mounds of seaweed in some places. Since it had been windy for some days, few may have complained about it but tourists might have thought differently. They probably expected better since Malta is promoted as a tourist resort.

Since tourism is a vital source of income and employment, the argument needs to be extended a bit further.

It stands to reason that the island ought to be well organised to copenot just with the removal of seaweed but also with ensuring that maintenance of public places is carried out all year round.

It is not just the roundabouts and key squares in Valletta and in some other localities that ought to be constantly taken care of but also the rest of the public places as well. The size of the island makes for very easy access to practically every nook and cranny.

With people, including tourists, already going to the beaches in droves, greater attention ought to be given to ensuring that the approaches and the bays are kept as clean as possible.

Lack of maintenance work, overflowing bins, dirty public toilets, broken pavements, encumbrances on pavements, popular quays, waterfronts and even roads, haphazard parking practically everywhere, excessive noise and dust and so many other irritants give a bad impression.

Unfortunately, noise and dust are often readily taken as being an integral part of our Mediterranean culture, not worth bothering about.

Trucks still spill building material on their way to construction sites, too many street corners, or open spaces in between buildings, are repositories of unwanted material and rampant indiscipline by drivers cause chaos in nerve centres.

A nagging shortcoming is the sheer lack of attention to detail. Take, for example, the Gozo ferry arrival concourse: two hanging wires by the left-hand side of the escalator have had their shades and bulbs missing for months. The light by the corridor door leading to the exit has not functioned for ages and the service booths on the right hand side are blocking the smooth flow of people out of the building. They should be placed elsewhere. There appears to be no one taking care of such basic things.

The Cittadella restoration project, most wonderful as it is turning out to be, is taking far too long to complete.

It very often happens that when public projects are completed they are neglected or not given the attention they deserve. This is an endemic shortcoming that ought to be checked if Malta is to make the leap forward in quality that everybody expects. The picture is not all negative: some places do look spick and span and the landscape consortium is doing wonders in many of the public gardens and public places.

Excellent work is being done in the restoration of bastions and public buildings. Restoration of buildings in Valletta is giving the city a new lease of life. The capital, of course, requires special attention all the time and pedestrianised areas ought to be left as such, with no cars, government or private, allowed anywhere. The booths, transport company offices, kiosks, and stalls next to the Tritons Fountain give a ghastly appearance to the entrance.

There does not seem to be any political will to bring order to this area.

Regular maintenance, discipline and order and attention to detail ought to be bywords in the programme to improve the island’s image.