Reference is made to the statement issued by opposition spokespersons Marie Louise Coleiro Preca and Silvio Parnis, entitled Telephone Inaction (TMID, 12 April). The Secretariat for the Elderly and Community Care would like to state that contrary to what is alleged in the said statement, the telephone system in Female Wards 5 and 6, and all other wards for that matter, is, and has been functioning normally. Hence residents and relatives can communicate without any problems. This fact could have been verified with a simple phone call to the ward in question prior to issuing a statement aimed only at garnering political advantage.

The alleged fault affected only a commercial card phone in the same ward, one of the 30 currently in place at the residence, that for a short period could not take incoming calls. The fault was rectified within a few days. During this period relatives could still contact residents at any time of the day through the residence’s telephone operators.

Emanuel Abela

Director of Information

Valletta