One of the most notable features of our culture is to complain, criticize and find faults ad nauseum. Some complaints are justified and are a means of feeling the pulse of the people and address injustices.
Lack of complaints does not mean that things are proceeding smoothly on a bed of roses but rather that either a complaints system is not in place or if in place, people have lost hope in complaining or ever seeking redress.
Two such complaints which fall in the realm of ‘justified complaints’ are freezing classrooms and road maintenance
The classrooms at the Adult Learning Centre in Blata l-Bajda (ex-Maria Regina) are used for courses in the evenings, between 5 and 8pm. And while it is commendable that classrooms are being fitted with the latest visual aids and technology, it is indeed pitiful that rooms are freezing in winter and most students attending the courses have to wear multiple layers of clothing in an attempt to beat off the cold.
The windows in these rooms have been there since the 1950s and 60s and do not close properly, so cold wind comes in through the fissures making the rooms icy compartments. The rooms need urgent heating installation. Whereas ceiling fans exist, there are no heating facilities. It is indeed uncomfortable to follow the lectures in such conditions.
Many of our roads have become a nightmare and look increasingly more like a scene from a Star Trek movie with their deep and dangerous potholes. This only leads to potential accidents and severe damage to vehicles.
It seems that both political parties have gone silent or have even lost hope trying to tackle the problems of roads. One hardly hears them mentioned in Parliament. Are our bigwigs perhaps depending on EU funds for their upkeep? Both arterial and secondary roads need upkeep.
For example, the road leading to Qawra, as one turns into Qawra from the Coast Road at Salina, is in a truly pitiful and extremely hazardous state. It is not just a matter of filling in the potholes of such roads but of having a proper road management and treat each road work as a project in itself and ensure that contractors who win tenders do the proper mixture of cement.
If the base mixture is not strong and deep enough, the problem of potholes will arise over and over again. It is useless putting on asphalt (tarmac) on a defective base. Standards and specifications, such as the cement quality must be respected and thoroughly checked while the work is being carried on and not after, when it is too late. The recent example at Mater Dei Hospital is a classic example of a poor quality mix of concrete.
It is hoped that, as taxpayers, we get a good run for our money spent on road taxes, income tax and other fees. Classrooms need to be warm both for the elderly who attend evening classes and the young during school hours. Moreover, those roads must be maintained and redone properly, if necessary.
Politicians take heed!
Anthony Zarb Dimech