The decision of the Planning Authority to approve the City Centre project by db Group at St George’s Bay has provoked justified widespread criticism. The project itself is highly controversial but the workings of the planning board are now also under the spotlight.

In an unprecedented and outrageous move, the Planning Authority’s executive chairman Johann Buttigieg approved expenditure of nearly €9,000 to ensure that board member Jacqueline Gili would be present for the vote. He organised to have her flown over to Malta by private jet from her family holiday in Sicily that morning to cast her vote (which happened to favour the project). She then flew back, again by private jet, that same afternoon to continue her holiday.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat claimed he was unaware of this and disagreed with the decision. The chairman of the planning board, Vincent Cassar, said he did not know that Gili was being brought to the board meeting on a private jet. He too disagreed with this action, explaining that it was not necessary to ensure that all board members were present for this particular vote. Gili had been absent for over a third of the board hearings last year.

Buttigieg insisted he did not require permission to hire the jet. But he also informed this newspaper that, without “political backing”, he would be “an idiot” to repeat it in future. He claimed that he wanted to avoid criticism of the authority by ensuring that a full planning board was present for this important decision on the db Group project.

If Buttigieg genuinely intended to shield the PA from criticism, he has failed miserably. The immediate public reaction to his admission on the jet was to call loudly for his resignation.

He claims that his intentions were good, but this is irrelevant. His action was completely out of line with normal procedure and involved considerable expense. He claims that he took the decision on his own. He therefore single-handedly set an unacceptable precedent which has undermined the credibility of his organisation.

Public trust in the Planning Authority is low at the best of times and he is causing it to sink further. Buttigieg should step down immediately to enable this important regulatory body to try to regain some credibility, with a fresh face at the helm. The workings of the planning board are also under scrutiny due to a potential conflict of interest of one of its members. Matthew Pace is an owner of a real estate agency which was involved in selling property at the City Centre project, prior to its approval by the board on which he sits.

Was the possibility of a conflict of interest declared to the board chairman?If it had, he should not have allowed it. Such conflicts of interest, perceived or real, further undermine the credibility of the authority. This also raises the broader question on whether it is acceptable for a property agent to have a seat on the planning board in the first place.

The approval of this permit was opposed by thousands of people and their local councils. But the board forged ahead and voted for the project anyway, irrespective of the impact it will have on the quality of life of people living in the area. The public consultation process may function on paper but it does not appear to carry weight in reality. The interests of big business are too often favoured over the interests and concerns of ordinary citizens.

The planning board decision reflects the government’s direction, which supported the db Group project from the outset, beginning with the controversial land deal.

To accommodate the project, the Institute for Tourism Studies has already been relocated temporarily from this site to the former Air Malta offices at Luqa for a period of five years. Last December it was revealed that the costs of this ITS move were being covered by db Group. Minister Konrad Mizzi, who handled the land deal, had however insisted that there were no strings attached.

People are disillusioned and angry with the PA. They have been overruled and ignored, and must now resort to lengthy and costly appeal procedures to continue their struggle to be heard. While the authority appears to have plenty of funds to spare, even hiring a private jet for a board member to attend a meeting, it is hard for civil society to raise the necessary funds for appeals at the planning tribunal.

This makes it difficult for people to counter decisions which may affect their lives and homes directly.

The playing field is far from level, and regrettably it is ordinary citizens who are too often on the losing side.  

This is a Times of Malta print editorial