I wish to join in the condemnation of a statement, expressed in court and reported in local media, by a police superintendent who said that the Maltese are afraid of going to Marsa as a result of criminal activity by immigrants.

When I was a teenager, I used to attend the technical school at Paola. Being young and foolish, I often used to spend my daily allowance and not have any money to take the two buses back home to Sliema. So I used to walk.

When my father discovered what I was doing, he gave me a good telling off. I remember him telling me never to pass on foot through that part of Marsa, as it was a dangerous area, frequented by criminals.

Since then, I have always been told, even by some Marsa residents, that the area was full of pimps, prostitutes and thieves. It is also renowned for illegal gambling and dog fights.

Perhaps, the police superintendent is young and he does not known this area in Marsa, which is better known as Albert Town.

Please stop blaming everything on the immigrants because, like the rest of us, there are good and bad people of every race, colour and creed.