AD’s newly formed regional committee in Gozo referred to the agreement reached between the Investments and Information Technology Ministry on the development of Fort Chambray. Committee spokesman Victor Galea said that Fort Chambray is a valuable assert that overlooks the main Gozitan port, with vast potential for the development of the Gozitan economy that is currently passing through difficult times.

However, the committee objected to various aspects of this agreement. “It is clear that this project has been an exercise in land speculation for the past few years. The developers with whom the government has conducted negotiations have not honoured the conditions of previous agreements and have left the project idle for a number of years. Therefore one cannot understand why the government, instead of terminating the concession granted to the developers, has negotiated an agreement with them in spite of this.

“The government has given these developers the opportunity to nominate a third party to continue the development. Through this arrangement the developers were able to reimburse their investments and make profits to the cost of the Maltese and Gozitan people who incurred losses because these developers failed to complete the project and embark on the restoration of the fortress’s bastions. The official excuse – that the government reached this agreement to avoid the legal difficulties created by filing a court case against the developers – creates a very dangerous precedent which reinforces the idea that the state is strong with the weak and weak with the strong,” Mr Galea said.

“It is also objectionable that the project has been exclusively transformed into a land speculation exercise. Originally, one of the conditions for development of this site was the development of a four-star hotel. Unfortunately, the present developers have been given the green light not to develop this hotel. The fact that this development will not be taking place reduces the employment opportunities created by the project.

“The development of 45 extra apartments, which create very few permanent jobs, instead of a hotel is very questionable. This decision contrasts with the government’s firm stand on the White Rocks project, where government has not permitted residential development.

“The price of Lm3.7 million which the government is asking for the sale of the 49 per cent of the shares which it still holds is also questionable. When one considers that the government is giving up 24 apartments in this project, and when one considers current property prices in Gozo, one finds that the price asked for selling these shares is very low. The ministry has justified its decision by stating that it was following a recommendation from KPMG, who had consulted property negotiators who had valued the government’s share at Lm1.2 million. This recommendation contrasts with current property prices in Gozo”.

In the light of these circumstances, Alternattiva Demokratika is calling for a full examination of the agreement by the Auditor General before the resolution for the sale of government shares is passed through parliament to ensure that the value of the government’s share has been properly valued and that the agreement will be in the national interest. This scrutiny is even more necessary in the light of the complete silence on the part of the opposition.

“It is important that, after so many mistakes, all due consideration is given to ensure that the project will benefit the Maltese and Gozitan economy. The project has already cost tax payers a lot of money.”