Following news that members of the Environment and Resources Authority are split and have yet to decide whether they will file an appeal against the high rise applications at Mriehel and Sliema, MP Marlene Farrugia, who is part of the newly formed Partit Demokratiku, has told members of the Environment and Resources Authority that their loyalty lies with Malta and the Maltese people,
"I understand your dilemma, and only knows what kind of pressure you are under, but I'm telling you that you don't have anything to be confused about".
"Government does not have a mandate to infest Malta with this kind of development, and didn't even have the ability to prepare a studied national masterplan that guarantees environmental economic, infrastructural and societal stability of such development".
"Your loyalty must be towards your country, and its people who look to you hoping you will protect them from this senseless imposition".
"If you don't defend Malta, in the position you occupy, tell me, who will defend it?" she asked.
"When I resigned from the PL, it was mainly on the point that peoples' representatives on the Environment and Resources Authority should be chosen solely by the people, and not by government, so that the environment would have someone to protect it".
She said that she wasn't afraid, even when "they tried to silence me through character assassination".
"Now your time has come. Do as I did and don't consider anything except that which is right, except your loyalty towards Malta and the Maltese people".
The Planning Authority recently approved the construction of two large developments which consist of high-rise towers. The first, in Mriehel, and the second being the Townsquare project in Sliema.
The ERA representative on the Planning Board Viktor Axiak was not present at the meetings where the decision to approve took place, as he was indisposed for medical reasons.
Mr Axiak had sent his views to the board, and his comments on the Mriehel project were read out, however his views on the Townsquare project were not.