The rule of law and the basic rights of the people are collapsing, giving way to the rule of developers, Moviment Graffitti activist Andre Callus said.

The government knows that this is a betrayal of the common good. "Its response has been to ignore us, hoping our opposition will simply disappear. We will not accept this," he said in comments to The Malta Independent on Sunday.

Yesterday week, Graffitti organised a protest activity against the development of what is known as the Villa Road project in St George's Bay. The main target of their protest was the amendments to the planning restrictions which are set to accommodate a massive construction project in the area.

Last month, reports that the government had given instructions to the Planning Authority to change the Local Plan so that the developers, Garnet Investments, would be able to build three towers, of between 27 and 34 floors each, were not denied. Environmentalists say this project will bury St George's Bay and the historic Villa Rosa building, and swallow the only open space left between St Julian's and Pembroke.

Following the news report, the Planning Authority had launched a partial review of the 2006 North Harbours Local Plan for the Paceville area. 

In a statement, Garnet Investments had said they view this review as an "opportunity to come up with a new proposal to the Planning Authority and deliver an even better project, one that not only offers a superior tourism product but also provides meaningful benefits to the local community."

Garnet Investments are the owners of the Villa Rosa site and in 2018 obtained a permit to build a combination of villas and offices in the area. They later revised those plans, instead proposing to build three towers housing five-star hotels. 

But the question as to what instigated the partial review has remained unanswered. "They failed to answer such a question," Callus said, "because the answer is so obvious that lying would make them look even more ridiculous. Following the submission of application PA/07254/22 which exceeded the limits set by the local plan and the meeting between Tal-Franċiż and the Government in Cabinet, the PA was instructed to amend the local plan."

He added that this meeting was only uncovered by the media and "never denied by the Prime Minister or other ministers. It is surely no coincidence that the revision process began after the developer's meeting with the Cabinet, covering the exact area of his proposed project, and has objectives aligned with changing development parameters."

"The revised local plan aims to increase the development intensity allowed in the area, thus facilitating the approval of Tal-Franċiż's (Garnet's) application. There was no attempt to hide the intent to accommodate this development, since the document initiating the Local Plan review for Villa Rosa extends to an additional area beyond what is defined as Villa Rosa in the 2006 Local Plan, aligning precisely with the site of PA/07254/22."

"The entire process is simply and shamelessly aimed at approving the Tal-Franċiż project" with claims of public consultation being "a blatant lie", Callus said, adding that with regards to the six objectives issued by the PA, "they are already designed to give Tal-Franċiż what he wants; altering development parameters so that what is currently prohibited becomes permitted."

"For over a decade, the Government has resisted community calls to amend local plans and planning policies to protect the environment and quality of life. Citing developers' so-called 'legitimate expectations', the government has steadfastly refused to act on calls to amend harmful laws and policies."

He added that even a simple request by NGOs to meet with the Prime Minister to discuss this dire state of affairs has so far been rejected. "They don't want to engage with us, knowing full well that the government and its authorities' conduct is unconscionable and indefensible."

"In reality, projects like the one proposed by Tal-Franċiż do not fulfil any basic human need," Callus said. "They are monuments to greed, benefiting only a select few-accommodation for the super-rich that will create mostly low-paid jobs, while effectively burying St George's Bay, engulfing the historic Villa Rosa building, and consuming the only open space left between St Julian's and Pembroke. At the end of the day, the best way to ensure open spaces for the public is not to obliterate them in the first place."

He sees Prime Minister Robert Abela's claim that such projects are needed to attract wealthy tourists as simply "absurd". "If catering to affluent tourists requires these monstrosities, it only proves that this type of tourism is even less sustainable than other forms. This excuse also fails to explain how attracting such tourists would reduce other forms of tourism and ease the pressure from the three million tourists already passing through our islands. In the Villa Rosa case, they are merely adding more, not transforming anything that already exists."

He said that "the problem lies in the current unsustainable economic model of limitless growth, and the government's promotion of Tal-Franċiż's project in Villa Rosa is emblematic of the issues with this model. Malta has chosen a fragile economy addicted to runaway growth for survival, leaving devastation in its wake with the government reaching the point of making a mockery of the courts to accommodate developers."

Whilst the Graffitti's chant "You dance to the music of the developers" is primarily directed at the Prime Minister and his Government, "as they are in power and thus squarely responsible for this mess," Callus pointed out that "we have also been highly critical of the Opposition, noting its silence on several seriously harmful planning and environmental issues, and its reluctance to propose or support anything that would curb the privileges of developers."

A direct action in relation to overdevelopment by a group of protesters, including individuals from Moviment Graffiti, who protested inside Parliament by dangling banners in the chamber and shouting, with some also wearing pig masks, as Minister for Finance Clyde Caruana began his Budget 2025 speech, earned the public condemnation from Speaker Anglu Farrugia.

Callus noted the irony, however. "We find it quite amusing that the Speaker is getting so hot under the collar over Moviment Graffitti's two-minute disruptive, but peaceful, action in Parliament, especially given the very serious issues our country has been facing over the past years. The Speaker should be more concerned about the sorry state of our Parliament, which has effectively become a rubber stamp for decisions made elsewhere. Anyone who follows Parliament, if anyone still does, will know that it has simply turned into an inconsequential playground of political spectacle. There is barely any serious discussion on any issue. Everything is handed down from the top-namely, from the Prime Minister and Cabinet-and Parliament merely follows orders, adding a bit of show to the proceedings."

Callus said that this was exemplified in the "sad case" of the vote on the Jean Paul Sofia public inquiry. "The vote against instituting the inquiry was taken on the Prime Minister's orders, only for him to change his mind a few hours later. Indeed, in that instance, the only serious political contribution to Parliamentary work came from the Strangers' Gallery, where Jean Paul Sofia's family laid bare the suffering inflicted on the people by powerful interests and the government's subservience to them."