The planning authority has finally relinquished all pretence of being a regulator and exposed its real role as facilitator for development, environmental organisations said yesterday, slamming the authority’s proposed amnesty.
Calling Mepa’s latest proposal “the mother of all building amnesties”, the NGOs said it was proof of the authority’s incompetence and put into question the very reason for its existence.
The authority was set up to regulate development and its suggestion to sanction long-standing illegal developments was proof it had failed, they said.
“We have joined forces to show our disgust at the proposed amnesty and condemn the authority’s submission to those who abused the system and stole what belongs to the public,” the eight NGOs said.
The Sunday Times of Malta revealed earlier this month Mepa was in the final stages of proposing an amnesty to sanction illegalities . The scheme is meant to wipe out the bulk of the planning authority’s pending enforcement cases, which number about 10,000, and to collect an estimated €20 million.
Amnesty rewards those who abused the system and stole what belongs to the public
The NGOs were joined by water expert Marco Cremona, environmental expert Alfred Baldacchino, and deputy chairman of Alternattiva Demokratika Carmel Cacopardo, who were all extremely critical of the authority’s proposals.
Environmentalists argued that any monetary gain from such an amnesty could not be the basis for such a decision. “The justification cannot be that this would bring in needed income for Mepa. The proposed amnesty is a direct threat to social justice and ecological sustainability,” the NGOs argued.
The eight organisations said amnesties given in 2012 and 2013 had already dealt with abuse that could reasonably be absolved. They pointed out that current Mepa chairman Vince Cassar had opposed the last amnesty, saying those who broke the law should not end up on an even footing with those who had adhered to it. At the time, Mr Cassar was president of the Chamber of Architects.
The NGOs demanded that before proceeding with its proposed amnesty, Mepa publish reports justifying its decision, as well as studies on the environmental impact of existing illegal development. They also insisted illegal buildings Outside Development Zones and the coast be immediately eliminated from any consideration.
The NGOs also stressed the planning authority was not distinguishing between infringements limited to permits not acquired and illegalities that should never be sanctioned because they breached planning rules. The proposed scheme would apply to all infringements that took place before 2013 and those in ODZ that took place before the full establishment of the planning authority in 1994.
“This is not going to solve Mepa’s problems nor will it solve illegalities,” they said, adding that the Italian experience showed the last amnesty had led to a 30 per cent increase in building abuse.
They said the proposed amnesty was a certificate of incompetence and demanded accountability. They said the public had the right to know who was responsible for a situation where patient abusers were being rewarded.
Ramblers Association president Lino Bugeja pointed out that the repercussions of this amnesty would have a lasting impact, unlike other amnesties already granted, such as those on tax payments and electricity theft.
The NGOs insisted the government could not continue to make rules and then complain they cannot be enforced. Environmentalist and physicist Edward Mallia said there was a pattern emerging where law enforcement authorities were just “pandering to wrongdoers”, an attitude that must stop.
The NGOs were Friends of the Earth, Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar, Din l-Art Ħelwa, Ramblers Association, Nature Trust, Malta Organic Agriculture Movement, Noise Abatement Society and Żminijietna.