Environment and Planning Commissioner Alan Saliba has lamented the lack of cooperation from authorities and departments, such as the Planning Authority, in his annual report.

The commissioner looks into complaints from the public about departments such as the Planning Authority, the Building Regulation Office and Transport Malta.

However, in his annual report for 2017, Mr Saliba says the authorities took months to reply to “simple, legitimate queries by the Commissioner”.

“It is not acceptable that departments or authorities expect citizens to provide certain information within a number of days…then the same department/authority takes months to reply to a simple legitimate query by the Commissioner,” Mr Saliba said.

The commissioner falls under the Parliamentary Ombudsman. His complaint of lack of information echoes a major theme of the Ombudsman’s 2017 report issued last week.

Mr Saliba highlighted that the “need for transparency and adequate provision of information remains a crucial requirement if the accountability of every department/authority is not to be jeopardised”.

He noted that 17 cases took over nine months to close, saying this was usually due to a lack of immediate reply from the department or authority concerned, “or even worse, due to no reply at all”.

“Time is of the essence, especially in cases related to health issues and the conservation of our heritage,” he said.

Some queries might call for significant input of resources by the department or authority concerned. However, an early reply would lead to a quicker investigation and early conclusion of pending cases, with the added advantage of reducing time-consuming reminders, he said.

The built environment and planning took much of the caseload in 2017, with 60 per cent of the complaints received this year being addressed against the Planning Authority.

“This in itself does not signify any maladministration by the authority concerned, but rather shows that citizens are more concerned with the immediate neighbouring built environment rather than the environment on a national level,” Mr Saliba said.

The Environment and Planning Commissioner also held regular meetings with the Noise Abatement Society of Malta (NASoM) regarding issues related to noise pollution and the need for further noise abatement regulations.

Other matters such as development control and traffic issues related to cyclists were also discussed during meetings held with Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar and the Bicycle Advocacy Group Malta respectively, Mr Saliba said.

Meetings with other stakeholders such as the Malta Developers Association and other entities that have a direct influence on the environment were in the pipeline, the Commissioner said.

Mr Saliba was not the only commissioner who highlighted the lack of cooperation from authorities. In his own report, Health Commissioner Charles Messina was disappointed with the lack of replies from the Health Ministry.

“More often than not, replies to the first request for comments take ages [to arrive],” he said. He also complained that the Health Ministry did not supply the full copy of the Vitals Global Healthcare agreement, regarding the concession to run three State hospitals.

“The ministry only sent redacted copies, which were the same ones tabled in Parliament,” Mr Messina reported.

The lack of cooperation by the government has been highlighted in previous Ombudsman reports. In 2016 he warned that his office had faced “reluctance, if not refusals, to provide it with information, notwithstanding the Ombudsman’s powers”.

And this year, the Ombudsman, Anthony Mifsud, delivered a scathing review of the government’s failure to disclose certain requested information, going so far as to highlight the way it undermines democracy and the rule of law.

The Ombudsman’s verdict

On good governance:

“The limits of the exercise of the power of incumbency still need to be defined if it is to be ensured that those who are entrusted with management of public affairs do so in the interest of the common good and not to promote partisan interests. These problems and others persist and are contributing to the general feeling that basic issues of good governance and the rule of law still need to be addressed.”

On failure to disclose:

“A systemic refusal or stubborn reticence to disclose information… generates suspicion and favours abuse and corruption.”

“Administering in a shroud of secrecy is indicative of a siege mentality and instils a sense of insecurity and doubt as to whether the public administration can withstand the legitimate scrutiny of public opinion in the search of truth.”

“Regrettably the public administration – and this includes public authorities – appears to have adopted a generally negative approach towards its duty to disclose information and the citizen’s right to be informed. Some have gone to the extremes by even refusing to provide important and even vital information to which the public was obviously entitled since it concerned important segments of the economic and social life of the country.”

“Outright refusal or extreme reluctance to disclose information can be said to have become a style of government that is seriously denting the openness and transparency of the public administration.”

“The situation is fast getting out of control and the people’s right to an accountable public administration is being seriously prejudiced. Action needs to be taken to remedy a rapidly deteriorating situation.”

“The failure of the public authorities to respond immediately to their queries not only showed a lack of awareness of the function of the Ombudsman institution but also disrespect to the Ombudsman and Commissioners as Officers of Parliament.”

On shortcomings:

“The atrocious assassination of a leading investigative journalist shocked Malta and the world. These events cannot go unnoticed and unheeded. Action needs to be taken by all in authority.”

On the culture of impunity:

“The popular perception unfortunately gaining ground, that any illegality or abuse however gross, can ultimately be forgiven, written off or forgotten, can lead to dangerous situations that undermine the democratic texture of society.

“It could generate a culture of impunity that leads one to feel safe to disregard laws and regulations and to commit illegalities in the face of express provisions of the law, in the expectation that eventually all will be sanctioned albeit with the payment of a compensatory fine.

“A culture that favours the strong against the weak, that punishes law-abiding citizens and rewards law breakers, provokes a crisis in law enforcement and undermines the rule of law.”

On the hospitals deal:

“The failure of the Ministry to provide the Commissioner with the information he requested was in clear violation of express provisions of the Ombudsman Act.”