The Marsa council yesterday called on Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt to provide a solution to the river of sewage that flows every time there is heavy rainfall.

"We are still waiting for a serious reply from the minister," the mayor said in reaction to Dr Gatt's statement in Parliament last week that placed the blame for the sewage outflow on residents' shoulders.

In reply to a parliamentary question from Labour MP Gino Cauchi, Dr Gatt said he was aware of the sewage problems regularly faced by the residents of Triq is-Sajjieda.

But the Infrastructure Minister said the problem was being caused because drains had been connected illegally to the sewage network. When heavy rains struck, the system could not cope with the amount of water drained into it, causing the sewage to spill out into the roads, he said.

His reply drew about a sharp reaction from Marsa mayor Francis Debono, who said the minister's words were "more of an excuse than a reply".

He urged the government to come up with a solution to the problem in order to protect public health.

But according to the minister, the solution lies in a broader plan by the Water Services Corporation to eliminate problems. The first phase is the enlargement of the Marsa pumping station which had already begun, Dr Gatt said.