Hats off to both ministers John Dalli and Austin Gatt. Keep up the good work you both are doing to bring the house in order in your ministries. The majority of us taxpayers are behind you in trying to eradicate old habits that are detrimental to the smooth running of the country’s essential needs.

Mr Dalli has a monstrous task in eradicating old habits at Mater Dei hospital. First of all new laws should be enacted which should stipulate that any doctor who graduates should work for at least five whole years with the government before being allowed to work elsewhere. Is it fair that after being given seven years of free education at the university, the said doctor leaves the island to practise abroad? If he refuses to adhere to the new regulation, the doctor will be ordered to pay for his seven-year course. In such a way, the taxpayer who forked out his tuition will get something in return.

Another case is the “scandalous” waiting list. Of course, it is scandalous! And how! First of all it is scandalous to hear that of the 35 operating theatres only 13 are functioning regularly during weekdays and all are closed during weekends. How’s that for blatant daylight robbery? Why are surgeons and specialists rarely active after certain hours? Why are appointments given for a certain time and one is only seen four or five hours after? Why are waiting lists increasing by the second and government employed surgeons and specialists are doing other work in their private clinics? Of course, they do this unscrupulously, because their patients have to pay huge sums of money even for a minor operation. Mr Dalli should impose regular working hours from 9am to 5pm to all surgeons and specialists working at Mater Dei. And so the long waiting list will quickly dwindle.

And what about Dr Gatt’s task to establish a modern transport system? For many years, bus and taxi drivers have literally taken commuters for a ride! Most taxi drivers overcharge heavily for the few kilometres they make per trip. Unlike many other countries where taxis are extremely cheap, here in Malta, you have to empty your wallet for a short trip.

With bus drivers its even worse. How many of them are polite with passengers? How many of them give you the right change? How many of them leave the terminus on time? How many of them perform their scheduled service regularly? How many of them drive properly through our roads?

If the minister is not going to stand firm by his words, we taxpayers are doomed forever.

Keep up the good work and the majority of all of us are four-square with you.

H. Calleja

St Julian’s