A few days ago, the Ministry for Gozo made a statement saying that those who want to oppose the relocation of the Gozo courts from the Cittadella to the Pjazza l-Assedju 1551 in Victoria should discuss this only at Mepa.

My family and I are one of the many opposing this proposal made by the government, since this open space had never been planned for any type of building and we invested in our property here because the land was passed from the Church to the Joint Office with the aim of remaining an open space.

Why is the Church silent on the matter? Is the Gozo Curia going to reap some benefit if this open space is turned into a building site?

Why is the Ministry for Gozo saying that no one should express a point of view in public about a proposed building once the application has been submitted to Mepa? The Ministry is defending a mega development that will destroy Pjazza l-Assedju.

I voted for my country to join the EU in order for me and my children to start living in a truly democratic country. But the democratic process, according to the Gozo Ministry, should be reduced to the largely ineffective exercise of complaining before Mepa. Who trusts Mepa nowadays?

There are alternative sites in which to build the law courts without destroying further open spaces in Gozo. The best, in my opinion, is to find an already unused building and convert it to meet the requirements of today and tomorrow. One of the proposals made by Alternattiva Demokratika is to upgrade the huge ex-MMU derelict premises just outside Victoria.

These premises have been neglected for years. What is the ministry's objection to relocating the law courts unused premises?