Priests who spoke out against upcoming high-rise projects were simply voicing people’s concerns and should not be labelled “political”, Archbishop Charles Scicluna has told The Sunday Times of Malta.

Archbishop Charles Scicluna: “Branding any criticism of the government, which is meant to be the steward of the common good, as sitting on the opposite side, is a primitive and puerile argument.” Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi

“I think those [clergymen] who have spoken out so far have done very well to represent their parish and the concerns many people have over these developments,” he said.

The vocal Archbishop was contacted yesterday after the Church’s Environment Commission came out against planning authority decisions to approve the building of towers in Sliema and Mrieħel.

In a statement issued on Friday, the commission said that criticism of the two projects was justified. Before a final decision was taken on any project, especially when dealing with large developments like these projects, one should meticulously consider the impact they have on society and the environment, the commission said.

“In this case one has to consider the consequences on an area much larger than the surrounding streets, indeed reaching far beyond the locality of the building itself,” the commission said.

The commission’s statement followed similar concerns raised by parish priests in Sliema and Ballutta who on Wednesday criticised the “frenzy” of construction projects in the area.

In a joint statement, the priests said people’s complaints had fallen on deaf ears and permits were issued anyway, without a holistic plan for the area.

The commission praised the parish priests for their statement: “Such an initiative will hopefully be an inspiration to other groups/parishes who have at heart the good of their communities. May they never refrain from speaking out in the name of those whose voice is seldom heard in quarters where decisions related to their quality of life are often taken.”

I think those [clergymen] who have spoken out so far have done very well to represent their parish

The vocal criticism, however, raised eyebrows in other quarters. For instance, Mario Fava, head of the Labour Party Local Councils section, took to his Facebook to question the motives behind the criticism. “Where was this criticism when other development was done in Sliema and St Julian’s?” he wrote.

Reacting to this Mgr Scicluna said the timing of criticism may be legitimately questioned: “People will always ask if this is too little too late.” However, he was quick to shoot down any notion that the criticism was politically motivated.

“Anyone who makes this a political matter is doing a disservice to society. Attributing a political motive to any parish priest would reduce this to the banal. It is actually the usual nasty game of putting a political badge on anyone who speaks his mind, and this has to stop,” Mgs Scicluna said.

He said the criticism was in the interest of “the common good”, which he hoped was a cross-party concern.

“Branding any criticism of the government, which is meant to be the steward of the common good, as sitting on the opposite side, is a primitive and puerile argument,” he said.

Mgr Scicluna said he hoped he had empowered priests, who may not have previously spoken out on such matters, “to do the right thing”.

“I would not say I emboldened anyone to say anything, but perhaps they feel empowered to speak out on something that I have also spoken about. I support them fully,” he said.