No one in his right mind would be deceived into believing that the two major parties are in accord over the construction of the Sant’ Antnin recycling plant in Marsascala.

The pattern is obvious and clear. Both parties pretended to take a look at three to four alternative options but neither of them has been willing to name any location prior to the approaching general election. It’s all question of votes. I happened to be listening to the debate on the environment and was more than convinced that the two parties nowadays seem to converge more and more.

To hear George Pullicino bombastically talk about how in the future, but of course only in the future, the Malta Environment and Planning Authority can be made more transparent was hilarious. Could this be the same minister who presided over an authority, for which he is directly responsible, that blocked its own auditor’s report regarding the process of the Sant’ Antnin plant?

But why lambaste only poor George? The opposition has not behaved any differently. Neither Roderick Galdes nor Dr Joe Brincat, for the sake of their own credibility, had the audacity to ask the minister to produce the auditor’s report and to make it public. I have not once heard the MLP leadership insisting for the report to be published.

Of course, Dr Brincat happens to be the Malta Labour Party’s representative on the Mepa Board. Did he see the report? Most probably yes, otherwise an experienced lawyer like him would have made use of article 17c(3), of the Development Planning Act to force the Audit office to give a copy of the report to the Mepa Board, thus giving him the right to see it.

Is it that the MLP was, perhaps, only interested in political mileage rather than the welfare of the residents of Marsascala? Did they calculate that, should they gain power, all they have to do is wash their hands of the affair by blaming it on the previous administration? It’s all so rather obvious.

What is less obvious is, when Court procedures instituted by the Front Against Sant’ Antnin are still pending, why did the Prime Minister announce that the first phase of the plant will start operating at the end of this month? It will be interesting to see what the interpretation of the Ombudsman, once again confronted with another dilemma by the Front, will be.

As a resident of Marsascala, my family and I, together with at least 95 per cent of the residents of Marsascala, have suffered the consequences of the government’s decision. The government not only ignored the residents of Marsascala but rammed their protests down their throats.

I am equally aware of the twists and turns surrounding the whole process. I believe, based on the knowledge I have obtained from visiting similar sites abroad, that this is a technologically-flawed plant and the main reason behind it was the European money the government was gasping for in order to make its finances look credible by election time.

I look forward to the day when, backed by my fellow residents, and a functional and strong Accountability Act, I can insist on the report being made public and action taken against all those who imposed such a trauma on the people of Marsascala.

Josie Muscat

Leader Azzjoni Nazzjonali

Marsascala