Infrastructural works on a relatively small project to embellish a neglected garden in Paola are still at the initial stages despite promises from Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi last April that works would be completed in a short time.
Residents in the Wied Blandun area, where the Dom Mintoff Garden is situated, said that despite their complaints to Dr Mizzi’s ministry, “works have been on pause for a very long time and have only restarted at a snail’s pace in the last weeks”.
“The only thing that Dr Mizzi has done expediently so far is to change the publicity banners on the fence to inform everyone that he is no longer a minister without portfolio and is now responsible for tourism,” said a pensioner who frequently visits the area.
“It would be better if Konrad [Mizzi] makes sure that the works are completed soonest and that the workers here do more than two hours of work a day,” he complained.
It would be better if Konrad [Mizzi] makes sure that the works are completed soonest
A young mother who lives in the vicinity said that she feared her children could go out to play in the garden nearby, as the site was left unattended, with a gate that was left unlocked and dangerous structures around the place.
Only a few employees were actually working on the project when the Times of Malta went on site, and much of what has been done so far is preparatory underground infrastructural work.
Read: Works on new Paola garden ‘halted shortly after launch’
The project to turn the area into “a new, family-friendly environment” was launched by Dr Mizzi in his home town locality just a few weeks before the last election, in June. He had promised his voters that “work would continue uninterrupted until completion”.
However, just after the election, the project came to a stop, with the ministry citing “improvement in designs”.
It took months for the works to resume following a raft of complaints by residents.
Asked on Friday what the target date for completion was, a spokesman for Dr Mizzi did not reply.
However, he said that works “are currently ongoing” and mentioned the removal of large and invasive tree species, the construction of a large water reservoir and the heavy pruning of trees.