The local councils’ reform would be useless if the people directly involved – and by this I mean mayors and local councillors – do not take it seriously. If they ignore their responsibilities, then no amendments to the law will make the system work better and the residents happier.
Introduced in the first half of the 1990s, the importance of local councils has evolved over the years and, today, they have more to do and more money with which to carry out their tasks.
But it all depends on the mayor, and how hard he or she works. Localities that have, or have had, mayors who dedicated their time and efforts to improve their town or village, have made great strides forward in terms of general outlook.
These councils not only involve themselves in what they are obliged to do by law, but take initiatives that go beyond and above their line of duty. It is a pleasure to visit these localities or attend activities they organise. Vittoriosa and Mellieha are two such places, and I urge all other mayors and councillors to go and have a look, and possibly follow in their footsteps.
On the other hand, localities where mayors have not led the way and who disregard their residents’ pleas, or councils that were entangled in internal disputes – not only at political level – failed to live up to expectations.
The local councils’ reform that the government pledged soon after it was elected has tried to address the issue of accountability. Councils however should not only be held accountable for the money they spend or how they spend it – a good thing, considering that it is taxpayers’ money – but also in the way they manage their locality.
One could argue that, on the whole, residents hold the power in their own hands because it is they who elect their mayor and councillors. They can oust an unwanted mayor or councillor if he or she does not perform by simply not voting for him or her. Fair enough, I say, but this does not mean that residents always get it right.
Take St Julian’s as an example. While some work has been carried out in the heart of the seaside town and in Paceville – where the council spends much of its money assigned to cleaning to clear the mess left by thousands of revellers who come from all over the island – other parts have been left abandoned.
I happen to live in one of these neglected areas, in Birkirkara Road, and I have written about this neglect several times. I also know of residents who have phoned up the council to complain about the situation and ask for the council to take action. However, nothing has changed.
The council will argue that the playground in this street has been renovated and the pavement redone. That’s fine, but why were the residents’ pleas to use the project as an opportunity to create more parking spaces ignored? Why was a dead tree that was blocking the pavement not removed, with the result that people with prams or wheelchairs have to go down onto the street – which is nearly always impossible because of cars parked next to the pavement – to continue on their way? Why wasn’t a trunk of another dead tree removed from the grassy patch next to the telephone box?
And why was the playground left without electric lighting, meaning that children have to either continue playing in the dark or else go home at 5pm in winter? Does the council believe it is safe for children to play in the dark?
And, while I am at it, I have to mention that it is not only the playground that is in darkness after sunset. A section of street lighting – five street lights in succession, to be exact – has not been functioning for months but, although this has been reported and I have already written about it twice in this column, the complaints have fallen on deaf ears.
An elderly couple told me they are afraid to go out in the evening because of this. And I also do not feel comfortable walking in the dark either.
There is another thing. My car’s side mirror was broken twice in a matter of a few months while it was parked outside my home – the last time was a couple of weeks ago, and this time I lodged a report at the police station about it. Having a street in darkness makes it much easier for vandals to strike or for such accidents – if it was one – to go unnoticed.
And, speaking of traffic accidents, at least two cars parked in the area had to be scrapped because other cars coming down at speed from San Gwann crashed into them. As residents we have suggested traffic calming measures – sleeping policemen are everywhere these days – but the St Julian’s council has not taken any notice.
A fork lifter has been abandoned there for months and a car with one missing wheel was left occupying precious parking space just before Christmas. All this is happening in a stretch of road barely 100 metres long.
What else do I have to do to make long-serving (Nationalist) mayor Peter Bonello listen to us? Is he accountable to anyone? Is the party he represents happy that he keeps ignoring residents? Or are we too few to make an impact on the outcome of the election?
Do I have to go to the Local Government Department to get them to push him into doing something? Do I need to speak to parliamentary secretary Chris Said as well? Should I call Nationalist Party general secretary Paul Borg Olivier with my complaint? Should I bother any MPs who contest the St Julian’s district to intervene? Do I need to go even higher than that and send an e-mail to the Prime Minister?
I do not think so. Local councils were created to be of service to their residents, but their reason for being is lost if they ignore residents’ pleas.
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