One of the most irritating things under the present Nationalist Government is the way some people seem to go around rules and regulations with impunity. An E-mail I received recently from that champion of the environment, Astrid Vella, left me speechless.

I was aware of the controversy about the rape of Bahrija Valley but it is only now that I realize how scandalous the abuse is. This development violates no less than sixteen Structure Plan policies and regulations relevant to rural areas. Excuse me, but what is MEPA there for? Is enforcement totally non-existent in this country? Or, to be more precise, is the government strong with the weak and weak with the strong?

An affront to citizens

Unfortunately, this anarchy has now crept into all aspects of life in Malta.

Take the building industry, why is it that the regulations about the time of starting work and finishing it are so blatantly disregarded by many? Are citizens not entitled to their rest? Is it acceptable that a person facing a long day of work is woken up very early in the morning because some unscrupulous developer could not care less about rules and regulations?

Is it acceptable that trucks are sometimes parked in a manner such that they block access to private garages for hours on end? The arrogant way in which some developers behave has to be experienced to be believed!

What is most irritating is the blatant way some people openly flout the law. To see workers arrive, sometimes even very early on a Sunday morning, and calmly start disturbing the peace of the neighbourhood at a time when this is not permitted by law is really enervating.

Rude public transport drivers

Whatever happened to the Public Transport Reform? My blood boils when I read a letter such as that which appeared in The Sunday Times of 14 June, entitled " Overcharged and humiliated by bus driver".

How long are we going to tolerate uneducated, rude and aggressive bus drivers? Are we aware of the damage caused to our tourist industry because of the bad behaviour of some of these bus drivers?

We need draconian measures to stamp out such abuses. Show no mercy. Any bus driver found guilty of humiliating passengers should be instantly kicked out. Public Transport will function better without him. Certain people still seem to be above the law and do as they please.

I do hope that the writer of the letter in question, who seems to be a foreigner judging by the name and surname, will receive satisfaction for the insult endured at the hands of a person whose position entails setting an example, albeit a good one and not a bad one as in this shameful case!

A shambles

I don't like being negative but the truth is that it's a shambles out in the streets and squares of Malta and Gozo under this PN Government.

Have you noticed the increase in the number of vehicles belching out carcinogenic fumes? Was the enforcement drive before the 2008 General Election just a vote-catching gimmick, after all? Have you noticed the increase in noise pollution everywhere despite the fact that we have been in the EU since 2004? And this Government always pays lip-service to the issue of animal welfare but the present situation still leaves much to be desired.

Is this what you voted for in 2008? How long can we keep on going down the drain under the Lawrence Gonzi administration, this sorry apology for a Maltese government?