Joseph Muscat has guaranteed a prominent place in Maltese history for himself. As an MEP, an MP and Prime Minister, he certainly deserves to be included among the most important political figures of independent Malta.
Muscat will, however, also be remembered by present and future generations as the Prime Minister who has given the go-ahead to the definitive destruction of our land.
And he has done it on multiple fronts.
The giveaway to the pseudo-Sadeen university, which includes the Cospicua historic docks and the 18,000 square metres of virgin land in prime site Żonqor point, is simply scandalous, and any normal level-headed Maltese can see that.
Unfortunately, the Prime Minister is intent on surrounding himself with fawning “yes men”, who are just there to rubber stamp any decision or policy the Muscat government takes.
In this context, one must really salute the courage and consistency of the “No Woman” Desiree Attard, whose sincere love for her country has not wavered over the years.
Despite being the Labour Party Deputy Mayor of Marsascala, she has the moral courage and ethical strength to vote against the giving away of Żonqor to Sadeen.
If the Labour Party had men with at least one half of the credibility and ethical behaviour of this woman, this country would be in much better shape.
The Vitals hospital saga is another shocking example of the Muscat government’s behaviour: public hospitals given for a song to shady business people, the ones that Konrad Mizzi seems to have a penchant for dealing with.
Muscat will be remembered by present and future generations as the Prime Minister who gave the go-ahead to the definitive destruction of our land
Another rip-off consists in the public land and ITS building in Pembroke given for peanuts by the government to the PN businessman donor, Silvio Debono, now turned Tagħna Lkoller. The Times now reports that whole floors forming part of the planned residential tower in St George’s Bay are being advertised at €7 million to €9 million each.
And while we Maltese, and the children of your children, are being deprived daily of precious Maltese land, the supposed Opposition of this country, the Partit Nazzjonalista, was pocketing tens of thousands of euros as donations from DB under Simon Busuttil, and busy organising their MP Christmas parties at DB premises a few weeks ago, under Adrian Delia.
The rot is so embedded that now multiple applications for the building of monstrous 3,000 square metre petrol stations (cum carwash, restaurant, etc...) in our limited countryside have become the order of the day. Quite rich for a country that is only 320 square kilometres big and aims at freeing itself from petrol-fed cars by 2040!
The latest example was the recently approved Magħtab fuel station. After having been refused a permit a number of times, a few weeks ago came the volte-face. Of course, one should not be surprised at the usual fawning attitude of the Muscat MP – this time, Clayton Bartolo – but we also had Delia’s Ryan Callus seeing the light on the road to Damascus... and also voting in favour.
The flood-gates have now been opened. High-rise applications are not only being approved by the Planning Authority for those areas where high-rises are legally admissable (Paceville, Qui-Si-Sana, Gżira, Qawra, Mrieħel, Marsa) but they are also being handed in for areas where they are not.
The latest examples are those of Jerma in Marsascala and The Palms in Ta’ Giorni, St Julian’s.
Then we have the proliferation of industrial development: an industrial park proposed in ODZ area in Mellieħa and an industrial expansion proposed in Bulebel agricultural area.
The damage already done to our country cannot be reversed, but we must at least halt it.
Rather than Konrads, Malta needs many more Desirees to achieve this aim.
Arnold Cassola is former Alternattiva Demokratika chairman and former secretary general of the European Green Party.
Mark Anthony Falzon’s column is not appearing this week.