Let's settle this score once and for all I say.  Give us back our property and our rights as landowners and stop this gross injustice now.  It is like there are two or three Maltas.

One is for all the land grabbers paying nothing or close to nothing, one for the property speculators making millions and another for the owners who subsidise social housing, in some cases even for the rich tenants.  

Those people who own a house or a property and cannot touch it because of a tenant agreement which falls under the pre-1995 Rent-Law amendment when Mintoff changed the law of property with his "decontrolled" swipe, have been robbed for years of their income and the right to enjoy their own property.

How many houses or commercial sites, today in what can be considered good value areas, remain out of reach to their owners, who scrape in a measly €465 or €189 per year, while the tenants sit pretty and dictate any terms of compensation to evacuate the place.  Young couples who could have started off in such a house of their own, forced to buy at market rates;  parents who wished to leave something of value to their children but having passed away without ever seeing it happen, or individuals who could enjoy some additional income - all still forgotten.  Grandparents who fell into the trap of renting, with the mind to still hold on to their property, then finding they have lost the keys and their place is no more theirs to pass on or enjoy during their lifetime or even their grandchildren's.

Those who are well off, some even very well off, and still hold on to such houses for themselves are committing daylight robbery.  And in cases where the occupant cannot afford to pay high rents, then the Government should make good to the owners for the loss of income because by allowing for these paltry rents to continue, ordinary people are actually subsidizing social housing for the people, rich or poor - for the state.  We know the role of   "welfare families" in society by supporting unemployed members of their family or giving out meals or some financial assistance to help with the cost of living and so on, but few realize how much has been imposed on property owners when they lost their rights to a fair rent or to getting back their house or houses.  Their role in the economy should be recognized.

In the meantime, the boathouses in Armier continue to be sanctioned and their occupants mollified whilst the courts say they are illegal and ought to be removed.  They are in truth, not much different from those tenants who signed a contract giving them the right to stay in "My House" for €189 per year.  My house is your house. And in the case of Armier - your land is my land. 

The travesty that occurred in those dark days of the Mintoff nationalization is now coming to a boil.  Recently the case of the National Bank shareholders was decided by the courts in their favour.  We wait to see now when and what compensation they will receive.  But let us not forget too, the employees who had lost their pension fund in the same bank. In 1983 the bank transferred LM1,265,000 of their fund to the bank's reserves.  When the bank eventually distributed this amount, it excluded retired employees, who had been entitled to this scheme.  Their case went before the Commission of Injustices which ruled in their favour (100%). However when it went to Eddie Fenech Adami for approval -  for unknown reason -  he refused to honour it.  They wrote to the Prime Minister and the reply was - "after due consideration, your request for a reconsideration of your claim cannot be entertained". So their share (which was theirs by right) went to others and they lived their retirement at a significant financial disadvantage, unable to afford any small pleasure or expense.  Ex Barclays employees were also denied a full pension due to their funds remaining with Barclays.

Similarly, we can say, the revision of the Rent Laws under the Gonzi government was nothing more than a hoax.  Whoever is in the house, remains in the house at low rents.  Children who live there at the time of death of the tenant can still enjoy the same rent for another three years before finally being made to pay the market rates!  To give you an idea, my neighbour passed away, God Bless him - he was so sweet - at the venerable age of 94.  Lucky for the owner of his house, he lived alone and kept the house in good condition. But the prevalent terms and conditions can continue for years more and there is nothing that can be done for the owners to have their property back to enjoy.

There is a sense of false trading -   trading and selling  of the same property to several virtual buyers at the same time - here.  Because each time the value of property rises and we are stuck with pre-war or just slightly altered pre-war rents, then a false trade is taking place.  The Government has traded on my property to keep someone living in it at rent subsidized by me.  The least that could happen would be to allow a tax reduction to the Lessors.

The disgraceful situation with the PL lands and clubs that were requisitioned or leased at a pittance is now throwing a spot light on the injustice of it all. A sub-culture of those who can, over those who simply have no chance in a third world regime is becoming the prevalent force. What does the VAT refund on cars matter in comparison?  Peanuts.  Camouflage.  Own up to the disgrace perpetuated by the Perit and just stop it with these gimmicks.

If all the fuss about civil rights is to be really meaningful, then the political parties need to seriously redress all society and not just those who constitute a swing vote.  Wrongs, no matter how many years have passed over them, remain wrong until amends are made and justice served.  Bank of Valletta should compensate the ex employees - if they are no longer with us, then their sons and daughters, widows or widowers of those who were denied their pension. Same for Barclays and same for Lessors.  Credibility goes to more than  vote catching slogans, to the essence of government and the foundation of a civil society. The public is made up of different views and  opinions, incomes and contributions, and all are entitled to equal and fair treatment.  That is the mission of a government and the expectation of all individuals or communities.

Will such issues be tackled in the PN policy fora? Or do they concern themselves only with EU funds and loans for businesses and homes for the elderly?  The victims of this foul Socialist policy would have preferred the pension they were entitled to and the roof over their head that sheltered someone else, before they congratulate any government on opening a day care centre for them.  Although, naturally, anything that can help the elderly is always good.

I propose that both the government and the opposition set up a Commission for Injustices that will investigate and make recommendations to repeal laws that discriminated citizen's rights and for redress - not to be overturned -  to all victims of Mintoff's schemes.  We have a ministry or whatever, for bureaucratic affairs.  I think people trump that.

Allow me please to dedicate this piece to my grandmother, mother  and two uncles - all of whom are no longer with us and all of whom are the true people of Malta who deserve to have back what is theirs. Three direct families, several others extending from them. Next time there is a coffee morning think about what you owe them.