It must have been surprising, and disappointing, for many environmentally-minded people not to find in last Sunday’s issue one reaction from environmental NGOs to columnist Mark Anthony Falzon’s piece of June 17 ‘Stop the building madness’.

So far there has only been the strong personal comment posted on the day by Edward Mallia with a challenge Prof. Falzon will find difficult to take up. No sound, however, was made by any of the active NGOs; even just to prove they are not ‘comatose’ as they were provocatively tagged.

I do not share Prof. Falzon’s theory and I am not too sure he himself believes to have really set the seal on the issue of the NGOs’ silence over the last weeks. He is too intelligent a man to think that. Without much effort he could have found out that endless meetings are still being held with ministries, departments, the Malta Environment and Planning Authority and other entities.

Unless the environmental situation has now improved impressively (and judging by the Ramblers’ president’s articles in a Sunday paper some weeks ago, they definitely have not) these associations must still be venting their anger and frustrations, only these are kept behind closed doors. One has to concede this.

Prof. Falzon’s accusation of ‘tokenism’ cannot be simply brushed away, and I suspect it is this that irks him. Indeed, the NGOs’ silence sits awkwardly with the activism they have shown over the past years.

Why did Prof. Falzon not consider ‘burnout’ to be the reason for this silence following years of continuous struggle with meagre successes achieved? Or he could even have attributed this silence to prudence, or fear (if you will), of being politically tagged at a time of election fever.

But then, should NGOs steer clear of politics? Not in matters environmental. They do risk being politically tagged if they stop being active. Keeping silent on any action and statement, by whom­ever, regarding the environment is not an option for these associations. They all have their policy for the environment.

And it is not just the government, or the party in power, or Mepa which has to be praised or hammered. Ignoring the stands taken by the opposition (for example, Leo Brincat’s significant positive input), and the various positive proposals by Alternattiva Demo­kratika, is indeed much more likely to give these associations a certain political hue.