The Local Enforcement System Agency (LESA) has called for a meeting with the Gozo Ministry to address criticism of wardens’ conduct during the Santa Marija festivities last weekend.
A LESA spokesman told the Times of Malta the agency had contacted the ministry yesterday for “an urgent appointment to meet all concerned” after the Gozo Tourism Association (GTA) accused wardens of “irrational decisions” in issuing fines in Victoria over the weekend.
The spokesman could not immediately provide details on the number of wardens stationed in Victoria or the number of contraventions that had been issued, although he said the agency would provide these details in future.
The Victoria local council had not responded to a request for comment by the time of writing.
The GTA and Gozo Business Chamber issued a statement on Tuesday in which they expressed their frustration at the way traffic contravention fines were issued in Victoria during the busiest days for tourism on the sister island.
The lack of parking spaces in Victoria should not be borne by the visiting guests to Gozo
“It is a known fact that the Gozitan capital lacks enough parking spaces to cater for the needs of the community, therefore more common sense was expected from the local wardens on the busiest day of the year, when the island was hosting such an additional number of guests with their vehicles,” the organisations said.
“In the prevailing circumstances, it is expected that the local wardens should have adopted a preventive approach rather than resorting to the issuing of fines.
“The lack of parking spaces in Victoria should not be borne by the visiting guests to Gozo.”
The two organisations thanked Gozo Channel for its service and said the high number of visitors was the result of ongoing promotional campaigns in Malta and abroad. They described the results as the fruit of a sustained and continued promotional campaign to market Gozo in both local and foreign markets, but expressed concern that these efforts could easily be marred by “irrational decisions”.