My last article on the state of San Gwann and its residents, including those who live in Kappara, and the lack of reaction from the mayor, continues to anger the residents of San Gwann. Today, even Labourites have started to see the difference in leadership, which will translate into people voting PN for the first time round, as empty promises have remained such. If a Labour council cannot even cut weeds, clean up, maintain a garden, or answer emails or letters, then why elect an alternative government that surely mirrors such leadership?

At least, we will keep the administration that we have rather than ending up with a worse one.

Other residents from the localities of Ta’ Xbiex, St Julian’s and Gzira have called me in order to highlight their plight and urge proper action.

The Ta’ Xbiex council keeps insisting on keeping long yellow lines to accommodate one garage owner, to the detriment of a block of residents. Here is a case of equality served a la carte by a Labour mayor. To the disadvantage of other residents of all beliefs, the mayor put up yellow lines that deprive precious parking spaces. These lines have not been authorised by the Malta Transport Authority, and I cannot understand what keeps the ADT from removing these lines, if they are not legal.

In St Julian’s, residents in Alfred Gauci Street have been deprived of parking spaces, and were victims of continued and regular raids and issued bookings, when the yellow lines in the said street are, again, without a permit and illegal. My Parliamentary Questions to these above instances confirm the state of illegality.

So, elected mayors, why not arrange these situations? Your residents are asking for these injustices to stop and the situation to be rectified. Emails to the St Julian’s council are barely acknowledged, let alone answered. However, emails are sent to other residents, so I believe it’s the local council that is a loser. Examples extend to Main Street, St Julian’s , where due to the traffic flow and fast moving cars, and, through my asking, traffic slowing measures were taken.

One more example would be the work going on in a relatively small square opposite the San Giljan Waterpolo Club. Besides the fact that the work is being carried out in summer, in the peak season of Maltese and foreign holidays, the job has now entered its fourth month. The inconvenience, the lack of parking, and the dust are equally shared by the residents, lucky them.

I do urge the St Julian’s council to meet the groups of residents who have asked for a meeting with their elected representatives. Dialogue is a means of seeing the others’ point of view, rather than an opportunity for confrontation – and better decisions can then be taken.

Furthermore, reports of private residents washing roads to clear the dirt and requests for ramps for pushchairs or wheelchairs being totally ignored is not music to my ears.

Pembroke residents have again had cause to grumble on rowdiness due to more students being accommodated in the area. The place where they are being accommodated should have been used as offices for software development. Rather, its extra intake is now cause for more noise. So much for keeping in line with Mepa permits. If this is operating illegally, then the authorities should take immediate action.

The St George’s Bay beach is a place where foreign students meet. The disturbing point is that they also meet in the evening and at night, and have become a nuisance to passers-by. The area around may not be properly lit up, and drunkenness can make people do “funny” things.

In Sliema, a small road is blocked by bollards and residents are deprived of access in case of a fire, ambulance or any other emergency. Various PQs have confirmed that these bollards hold no permits from any authority. The police have been asked to reply. A further PQ asks the police for a reply, but the latter are waiting for an answer from Mepa.

If somebody stuck bollards without a permit, who is responsible? Meanwhile, the residents are kept waiting for a solution.

This article and the mentioned examples are meant to help the residents’ reasonable wishes to be heard and addressed.

Hopefully, this will help the residents to achieve this goal.

Robert Arrigo is a Nationalist MP