What are we to make of Road Minister Austin Gatt's ministerial policy directive which ordered the Malta Transport Authority to stop illegal roadworks?
Dr Gatt, never one to mince words, said that "public good was being sacrificed to suit private interests". Indeed, Dr Gatt. Welcome to Malta.
How many of the ills that Malta faces now are due to that very same approach? How many Nationalist supporters were disgruntled because they felt that some private interests are more equal than others? How many supporters wanted a Labour government so that at least a new set of Labour private interests might get a look in?
Assuming that this is not some politically motivated move (the kiosk is owned by a Labour councillor in Żebbbuġ), it is extraordinary that Dr Gatt has had the political spine to take this move - but the problem is why a similar stance was not taken years ago. Hands up all those who can think of other accommodations made for those with influence, whether they involve kiosks, roads, bottle shops, discos, boathouses or developments.
For far too long, the authorities meant to enforce law and order in the country have turned a blind eye to illegal activity. As soon as one offender got away with it, the next thought, not suprisingly, was "well, why not me too!"
No government has ever dared to wipe the slate clean, whether at Armier or Dwejra. The quality of all our lives has been compromised as a result.
We cannot walk along Pembroke for fear of disturbing trappers and hunters who have returned to claim their spots after having been turfed out of there some years ago. Check out the website of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority to see how many penthouses were built illegally and are awaiting sanction, or residential units put into basements not meant for habitation.
Walk in the road to avoid the tables and chairs of pavement cafés. Have your family Sunday ruined by an argument with a beach concession owner. Shell out €1 to pay a maverick who decides that he is an authorised parker. Get stuck in a traffic jam at Msida roundabout because cars are triple-parked by outlets there. Drive around a few blocks to find somewhere to park when you get home because an auto dealer leaves his cars on the road.
These are all minor aggravations but when they occur with regular and increasing frequency you either adopt the "if you can't beat them, join them" approach or you begin to seethe inside. Some illegal activities are not that minor. We need only cast our minds back to the recent fireworks explosion in Naxxar and previous tragedies to remind ourselves of the cost of ignorance and of ignoring. The problem is that many of these activities have been bred in the murky waters of political patronage.
Over the year, there have been stories implicating everyone from telephone receptionists to senior officials at ministries. We all believe, rightly or wrongly, that it is possible to speed things up, slow things down, move things around and even stop them... with just one phonecall. During the electoral campaign, how many people got involved with MPs for altruistic purposes and how many because they know that favours can be called in?
Every party in power faces these undercurrents; it would be naive to think that any party in power would be able to avoid them.
But the message has to go out that the government will at least try. Is the ministerial policy directive an attempt to do that? Will other ministers take the plunge and put their foot down?
If this policy really is a sign of the fact that Lawrence Gonzi means business, we should all take heart. It may the first step towards removing the trivial barriers that nonetheless stop us from becoming a real centre of excellence and a paradise. If it turns out to have been less noble in its motivation, there is truly no hope for any of us.