Parliamentary Secretary Jason Azzopardi has declared war on those who have stolen public land. He speaks to Kurt Sansone about his wish to change the culture of disrespect.
The House of the Four Winds in Valletta, where the office of Parliamentary Secretary Jason Azzopardi is located, commands one of the most breathtaking views of Marsamxett harbour. Just below Hastings Garden, the main office enjoys a 180 degree view of the harbour from Pietà creek to Tignè Point and beyond.
"It is a fringe benefit, I suppose," Dr Azzopardi says as he looks out of the window pointing towards the seagulls flying against the wind.
"They are amazing, flying against the wind to gain momentum and soar even higher. It is a lesson in its own right," he philosophises on the five graceful birds giving an aerobatic display over the harbour.
Dr Azzopardi has been accused of turning his crusade against illegally-occupied public property into a Big Brother exercise by asking people to report abuse. He disagrees.
Unfazed by the criticism even if it comes from two prominent members of his own party - backbencher Edwin Vassallo and former minister Michael Falzon - for him it is a question of principle.
"Democracy is nice," he says, smiling.
"I don't agree with their arguments because, by the same logic, we should remove the freephone number on which people can report criminal activities to the police or the freephone number set up by the planning authority for people to report cases of abuse.
"The state cannot be present in every nook and cranny. I would have to employ a legion of patrol officers and that is an impossible task. The state is facilitating enforcement by asking people to help it in curbing abuse," he says.
He dishes out some figures to prove his point and insists reports are followed up thoroughly before any action is taken.
Since mid-December, when the secretariat launched the free-phone service, no fewer than 800 reports were lodged by members of the public.
"We followed each and every one of them. Not all fell within the remit of the Commissioner of Land. There were some 300 reports that were in Mepa's competence and we passed them on.
"We are investigating the cases thoroughly before taking action. In one particular case we took three whole weeks to look into an issue. It was about a tract of land in Naxxar, which was usurped by a contractor to put his vehicles on. It transpired that it was government land taken illegally. We do put a big effort in investigating the reports before taking action. This helps us filter the abusive telephone calls," Dr Azzopardi says.
He insists the state is morally obliged to protect its property rights.
Returning to the criticism by his party colleagues, Dr Azzopardi says he respects their views, listens to them but does not agree with them.
"It doesn't bother me at all that the criticism came from people within my own party. In any case, I have also had MPs from both sides of the House congratulating me. I am in politics not to be applauded but to put into action the principles I stand for," he insists.
Determined to get on with the job he started soon after taking office just over a year ago, Dr Azzopardi says enforcement is being done with a human face.
"Even though we are not obliged to inform people we still write to them. We also meet them to explain why they are in the wrong and give them ample warning time. We are enforcing the law with a human face," he insists.
He admits, with a heavy heart, that the majority of abusers knew they were in the wrong. "It shows a culture of disrespect. If it is government land than it is up for grabs. I wish to change this culture. If I do not take action I am a participant in the culture of arrogance," he argues.
Dr Azzopardi insists enforcement does not have a political tint.
He denies allegations made by Magic Kiosk owner Joe Pace that the demolition of his kiosk was discriminatory since there were other establishments like his that were allowed to continue operating.
"We will fight the allegations tooth and nail. We will prove that none of the individual cases mentioned by Mr Pace in his court summons, where he is alleging similarities to the situation at the Magic Kiosk, resemble his case," he says.
Part of the emphyteutical concession to build the Magic Kiosk was granted to Mr Pace in the 1970s. This expired four years ago.
"Mr Pace had not been paying for this part of the concession since its expiration. In December, the second part of the concession expired. In July, the government had filed a judicial letter to inform Mr Pace that it was not the government's intention to extend the lease. We did this to allow him adequate time to inform employees. In December, we then issued an eviction order," he says.
Dr Azzopardi also defends his patch on the controversial boathouses at Armier where public land has been usurped for years with impunity.
He disagrees that the lack of enforcement action to date at Armier is sending out a message that the law of the jungle prevails.
"The government's policy is clear. Those boathouses built after 1992 have to be pulled down and this policy will be implemented. We are updating the information at hand to determine which of those boathouses were built after 1992," he says.
He justifies the 1992 cut-off date as the year when Mepa was set up and finds comfort in the fact that this is the same position adopted by the Labour Party (PL).
Leafing through a bunch of papers he demonstrates a copy of the monthly bulletin of the Armier Boathouses Association in which it was reported that the PL's former leader, Alfred Sant, had committed himself to the 1992 cut-off date during a meeting held in the summer of 2007.
But what has become of the PN's electoral promise to the boathouse owners that the area would be regularised and redeveloped according to approved plans?
"The Prime Minister has kept his promise. Soon after taking office he asked Mepa to react to the application filed by Armier Developments Ltd. As soon as the authority gives its reaction we will move ahead with the project as agreed," Dr Azzopardi says.
He smiles when suggested that Gozo seems to be a republic in its own right when dealing with illegalities of all sorts.
"Gozo is not exempt. We have taken over the tower at Xlendi and will be passing it on to a heritage NGO for restoration. In summer, we carried out enforcement actions on restaurants in Xlendi and Marsalforn. We will continue enforcing the law wherever there is abuse."
With more than 160 enforcement actions under his belt and a heavy case load still to be tackled, Dr Azzopardi is guaranteed an active stay in his first experience as a Cabinet member.
"Enforcement is a high priority for this Administration. Fighting abuse will improve our collective quality of life," he promises.
ksansone@timesofmalta.com