Following an item The Malta Independent carried on 28 July entitled “Fined... for cleaning dog dirt”, we received a number of reports from angry residents and shop-owners alike, giving a further insight into the matter. In the item, TMID told how Mr Spiteri, of La Maltija restaurant, had been fined because his maid allegedly removed dog dirt from the pavement just outside his restaurant by throwing a bucket of water over it.

The warden in question contacted TMID and contradicted Mr Spiteri, saying that the maid was simply throwing a bucket of water on the pavement and that there was no excrement. He said that there were other establishments that threw dirty water out onto the pavement and that he had given several warnings prior to issuing fines.

Another warden, who wished to remain anonymous, complained that a lot of delivery trucks could not manoeuvre in the streets because the pavements had been widened and the only choice they had now was to climb onto the curb. Apart from damaging the new pavements, this was obviously in breach of the traffic code and made them eligible for a fine. “We cannot decide to close an eye to certain laws and not to others,” he said. “It is not our fault that these things were not thought of beforehand.”The fact remains however, shop owners told TMID, that there is no proper cleaning service in place and that they have no alternative but to wash the pavements themselves.

Contrary to what St Julian’s mayor Peter Bonello told TMID, the weekly bowser, hired by the council to clean up the area, has not been in service since the embellishment work started some nine months ago, resident Maureen Darmanin said.

Mrs Darmanin and Mr del Conte Manduca, both Paceville residents, told of the problems they face on a daily basis, simply because there does not seem to be the political will to put in place a management system that is adequate for the area.

“We are not prepared to live in the filth and have a council that could not care less,” Mrs Darmanin said. “If you open the place to the public, you should have the proper infrastructure. We have to put up with people having sex in our forecourts, vomiting on our pavements and a host of other problems. The attitude we get from people when we chase them off our property is: this is Paceville – we can do as we please.”

Both Mrs Darmanin and Mr del Conte Manduca claimed that the police were often under-staffed and could not cope with the crowds that visit Paceville at weekends. Mr del Conte Manduca said that there had even been cases where the officers had turned a blind eye to infringements, giving as an example the case of a German girl who was urinating in a garden opposite his house.

When we contacted mayor Peter Bonello yesterday, he concurred with the residents and said that the police stationed in the area were often under-staffed and that there was a need for more security.

Regarding the fact that there was no bowser service, Mr Bonello, stood by the comment he had made to TMID last week, saying that the council has a contract for a bowser service and that he would be contacting the contractor to ask for explanations first thing in the morning.

Asked about the broken glass in the playground, here too Mr Bonello said that the place should have been swept and that he would be talking to the people concerned.

Regarding the management plan for the area, Mr Bonello said that the council had had talks with the Tourism Ministry and that a number of measures had been agreed upon which would be implemented shortly.

He also mentioned that a by-law will be published soon prohibiting people from walking around with bottles or glasses, but did add, however, that this should be complemented with an adequate number of police officers to enforce the law.

Mr del Conte Manduca gave TMID a tour of the area on Friday afternoon and the streets were also checked yesterday morning at around 7.00am, when the bowser should have been in the area. No bowser was seen cleaning the streets – a fact that was confirmed by Mrs Darmanin.

Although the streets were relatively free of the large amount of rubbish that can be seen in the early hours of the morning, there were occasional patches of vomit, excrement and broken glass on the pavements. Most disconcerting of all is perhaps the sheer quantity of broken glass found in the playground a few metres from Portomaso. The place is littered with smashed bottles and bits of glass, patches of vomit and other rubbish.

The situation is similar on the rocky waterfront, a few metres down from La Maltija restaurant, which is scattered with broken glass. Mrs Darmanin said that a German girl had cut her foot badly one night and had barely managed to walk out of the area to seek help.

Mr del Conte Manduca explained that what residents are basically requesting is for order to be brought back to the place, with a proper management system and an adequate police presence. In this connection, Mr del Conte Manduca even handed a letter to the prime minister during the opening of the embellishment, to which he has had no reply as yet.