Repeated calls on the authorities for improved lighting at Il-Menqa, in Marsa, have so far apparently fallen on deaf ears. The Menqa is poorly lit and the situation gets even worse when the catering establishments in the area close down and switch off their lights.

...And Out

The Zebbug local council, responsible for the Marsalforn hamlet, deserves praise for the attractive lighting system installed at the promenade at Marsalforn. But something must be wrong as many of the lights are often not functioning.

Garden Lore

We may rest assured that, on her way to San Anton Palace, Queen Elizabeth did not pass by way of Birbal Street, although this would have been a fairly logical route to take. This road has been in shambles for nigh on four months. Was it stipulated in the contract that it must be finished after traffic began using Manwel Dimech Bridge once again?

Block Votes

Work in Merchants Street, Valletta is progressing meticulously at a steady pace. Apparently this also means, ironically, that it must take a long time, so that the jig-saw layout is seen to be meticulous and steady. If shifts were longer, and more workers deployed on the job, the chances are that the whole project would be finished much sooner.

Health Food

The new Mater Dei Hospital canteen is charging astronomical prices. A ham and cheese sandwich costs 52c and a coffee, served in a Styrofoam cup, is 40c. One wonders what a family Sunday lunch would cost, with the added cost of parking (Lm1.25 for one and a half hours).

Middle Mien

At the Birkirkara public garden, works have been in progress for months on end and it looks as if it will take many more months for them to finish. Meanwhile, people are not comfortable about this because the place was one of the very few havens in this town.

Wheel Bad

The residents of Birkirkara Road, St Julians are very concerned about a situation that has developed in the area. What started as a motor mechanic business seems to have grown into what residents like to describe as a metal works factory. Some authority needs to take a look and see who is right and who is wrong.

Total Ban

Come January, schools will be banning the selling of junk food from their tuck-shops in a bid to foster healthy eating habits. A ban must, however, be imposed on all junk food consumed on the premises.

Hear Hear

The national broadcaster has been accorded a derogatory title by the Leader of the Opposition, who claimed it was being manipulated by parities having a vested interest in giving the Nationalist Party a boost. Ironically, the PN also claimed that PBS is biased - against it. It must be true, then, that one listens yet hears what one wants to hear.

Animal Cruelty

A British woman drove her son out of the family home and reported him to the police when she discovered he had been cruel to the family cat. He had to pay a fine and was also given a suspended prison sentence. In Malta, the court verdict for animal cruelty is merely a slap on the wrists, except on the rare occasion...

Times Tables

The Malta Transport Authority is making a great show of introducing scheduled bus services to Mater Dei Hospital and the University. These buses follow set routes and, once more, people and students who live in outlying areas of towns and villages have been forgotten. Some of these inevitably think that by the time they walk to the nearest bus stop they will have got to their destination in their own vehicles.

Pressed Relations

The so-called police Community and Media Relations Unit ought to be re-named to Community and Media One-Way Relations Unit. If the police cannot run a proper functioning PR unit it should either disband it or farm it out.

Wrong Conclusions

The authorities must surely realise that, unless the findings of the inquiries are published, the public could conclude that police officers abused their powers when they shot dead an allegedly threatening man in Qormi. Likewise, that the civil aviation authorities allowed a small plane to get too close to an airliner above Zebbug.