Spending thousands of euros on the expansion of St John's Co-Cathedral is unacceptable because the project has "no social, restoration or regeneration contribution," Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar said.
The environmental NGO, which has spoken out strongly against the project, yesterday again criticised the St John's Co-Cathedral Foundation's proposed museum expansion, this time on monetary grounds.
"In a time of financial crisis, a costly Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and an extravagant project costing €16 million... is not acceptable from a foundation which is public in nature, being a joint endeavour of Church and state," FAA said.
The organisation was reacting to a statement made by foundation president Mgr Philip Calleja in which he expressed regret at remarks made by Nationalist MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando.
Speaking in Parliament, Dr Pullicino Orlando rubbished the foundation's plans to extend the Co-Cathedral's museum underground and called on the government to divert funds allocated for the extensions to the urgent restoration of forts St Elmo and St Angelo.
The foundation itself had reacted strongly with Mgr Calleja saying that, rather than "deciding for Mepa", the MP should make sure the decision-making process runs as it should.
He also said the foundation regretted that Dr Pullicino Orlando chose to repeat the "many inaccurate claims made by an NGO" while ignoring the denials or clarifications issued by the foundation over the past months.
Reacting to this, FAA pointed out that all the information on which it based its criticism of the project was obtained from Mepa files and information supplied by the foundation itself.
"On the other hand, we do find inaccuracies in the foundation's repeated claims that no excavation is to take place within the St John's Cathedral complex, when the foundation's own plans clearly show two large lifts to be sunk into the subterranean, as well as corridors linking the cathedral to the enormous underground gallery to be excavated in front of St John's Cathedral," FAA said.
The organisation added that the proposed extension ignores the damage the excavation of a quarry in the centre of Valletta would inevitably inflict on Valletta's historic underground tunnel systems, as well as its impact on the fabric of the capital, its residents, tourists and commercial community.