Local councils in Gozo are up in arms over the lack of consultation by the Police Commissioner, who has allowed fireworks to be unloaded from the sea in their area.
Residents have been complaining. We were not consulted
Police Commissioner Peter Paul Zammit informed the Qala council last week that he will grant permits for fireworks to be unloaded in bays apart other than Ħondoq ir-Rummien.
Since explosions have destroyed most of the fireworks factories in Gozo in recent years, pyrotechnics for village feasts are being produced in Malta and then transported by sea to Gozo.
Controversially, fireworks have to date been offloaded in Qala’s picturesque bay because it is the closest point to Malta.
Żebbuġ mayor Nicky Saliba said when contacted that his council and the Marsalforn administrative committee would both object to the decision for fireworks to be unloaded in Qbajjar Bay or in an area known as Ta’ Xwejni.
He said the council and the committee only learnt such a decision had been taken after reading an article in Times of Malta.
“Residents have been complaining because they do not want this. We were not consulted. I agree with seeking other bays rather than Ħondoq but studies must be carried out,” he said, adding that the council and committee would be objecting to the authorities.
Mr Saliba, himself a fireworks enthusiast, said transporting the fireworks by sea to Qbajjar extended the journey time by two-and-a-half hours which would mean extra costs.
Transporting fireworks, including insurance and fees for police and a fire engine, could now cost €5,000.
Sannat mayor Philip Vella also said his council had not been consulted on the decision to unload fireworks at Mġarr ix-Xini, which lies between the village and Xewkija.
Mġarr ix-Xini bay was used last week to unload fireworks for the Xewkija feast last week.
Although Sannat residents would not be directly affected if fireworks are unloaded at Mġarr ix-Xini, he objected to the inlet being used to channel pyrotechnics to the whole of Gozo.
Similarly, Nadur mayor Charles Said said the council would only consent to Daħlet Qorrot bay being used to unload fireworks for his village’s feast.
Qala residents’ plight was brought to the fore in September last year when the village’s deputy mayor, Paul Buttigieg, embarked on a campaign urging the authorities to change this practice, which, he insisted, put residents at risk.
He said that practically every week throughout the festa season, villagers had to watch helplessly as truckloads of fireworks rumbled through the streets.
“All Gozo’s fireworks are unloaded at Ħondoq, then transported on roads of varying quality to all the villages, including San Lawrenz, at the opposite end of the island,” he had told Times of Malta.
Mr Buttigieg insisted that fireworks should be unloaded at bays closer to their end destination, such as Dwejra for the Għarb feast, Qbajjar for the Żebbuġ, Mġarr ix-Xini for Sannat and Xatt l-Aħmar for Għajnsielem.
Mr Vella and Mr Saliba said that if the authorities would issue permits for more fireworks factories in Gozo to replace the ones destroyed by explosions, the problem of transportation would be resolved.
Mr Saliba said he would propose the continued use of Ħondoq Bay but invest in upgrading the roads and possibly finding a new route away from the Qala village centre.
Questions sent to the Police Commissioner asking why councils had not been consulted before the decision was taken remained unanswered by the time of going to print.