11 NGOs have called for the removal of Simon Saliba from his position as Planning Commission Chairperson due to his “arrogant attitude and out-dated mindset” which are obstructing the right to a fair planning process.

“Mr Simon Saliba has consistently shown disrespect for residents and other objectors during sittings held at the Planning Authority and has often openly and aggressively sided with the developers instead of fulfilling his role as an impartial arbitrator,” the NGOs stated in a press release. 

The NGOs feel that his behaviour is part of a recurrent pattern since he has consistently shut out anyone who wished to voice their opinion against certain planning applications, as the examples in their press release indicate. 

“One of his first big hearings was the Balluta ferry pontoon application, when his declared decision to refuse the permit was hastily changed to an approval during a session in which he bizarrely appeared to be acting as lawyer for the developers. On another occasion, he even asked a resident to be escorted out of a hearing simply because she insisted on her right to object,” they explained.

More recently, Saliba cut off the microphone of an activist, Karen Tanti who was finishing an intervention against the building of apartments on a site of archaeological importance in Kalkara, effectively censoring her contribution. 

The Chairperson’s behaviour, in this case, has also been criticised by Architect Tara Cassar who also added that Saliba’s mishandling of the proceedings of the case is not limited to his dismissal of the serious concerns raised, nor his contemptuous attitude towards objectors. 

The development should not have been approved last Friday because the request being made no longer reflected the situation on site, Cassar explained, which in truth, is exceptionally telling of the Planning Commission’s seeming indifference for legal procedures regulating development. 

The NGOs calling for Saliba’s removal explained that his openly hostile attitude makes it clear that he has little respect for NGOs or the public, which legally have both the right and duty to safeguard cultural heritage. 

They believe that Saliba's “arrogant attitude and outdated mindset, together with his consistent defence of developers' interests rather than the public good”, contrasts starkly with the fresh start promised by Environment and Planning Minister Aaron Farrugia. 

For this reason, the NGOs wish to see the appointment of a Chairperson who can take the Planning Authority forward in the public interest.