Who do Mepa represent?
Published on The Times of Malta on Saturday 23rd June,2007 by James A. Tyrrell.
Due to the recent publicity caused by the decision by Mepa to grant a permit for the environmental destruction of the site at Ramla l-Hamra, I have been asking myself the question: Who do Mepa represent?
Do they represent the ordinary people of Malta and Gozo? Apparently not as they never seem to take a blind bit of notice to the objections raised by the people living in the areas affected by their decisions.
Do they represent tourists? As a tourist myself I would say definitely not.
Why would I as a tourist be in agreement with the destruction of the very things I come to the islands to see? If I wanted to holiday in a bland tourist trap I'd go to Spain.
Do they represent the environment? Again, apparently not as they are the ones giving permission for the environment to be destroyed.
The only people who get any form of representation from Mepa seem to be, oddly enough, developers! If I was a citizen of Malta or Gozo the question I would want answered is why are Mepa giving the green light to developments, which are effectively destroying the country's history? Given the position Mepa holds it is imperative that conflicts of interest do not arise.
Mepa chairman Andrew Calleja stated in his tirade against the FAA that he would definitely step down if any irregularities were to emerge. That's nice of him and to be honest I doubt if he would be missed. However, I would suggest that should any irregularities emerge Mr Calleja should not get the chance to step down as he put it. He should, in fact, be suspended along with the rest of the board pending legal action!
I am not writing this letter as a wake-up call to the people of Xaghra, because unfortunately they don't need it, but as a warning to every citizen of Malta and Gozo. The time has come to stand up to these environmental terrorists. They are trying to destroy Ramla l-Hamra and Hondoq ir-Rummien at the moment. Where will they attack next? How long before the developers and Mepa arrive in your village?
We do not own this world we live in. It is a gift from God who has been good enough to create it and make us mere custodians. We have an obligation to God to take care of it to the best of our ability. We also have a duty to our children as they have to theirs, to pass on the beauty that was passed to us by our parents and grandparents. What we do not have is the right to destroy what God has created in order to make a profit!
Due to the recent publicity caused by the decision by Mepa to grant a permit for the environmental destruction of the site at Ramla l-Hamra, I have been asking myself the question: Who do Mepa represent?
Do they represent the ordinary people of Malta and Gozo? Apparently not as they never seem to take a blind bit of notice to the objections raised by the people living in the areas affected by their decisions.
Do they represent tourists? As a tourist myself I would say definitely not.
Why would I as a tourist be in agreement with the destruction of the very things I come to the islands to see? If I wanted to holiday in a bland tourist trap I'd go to Spain.
Do they represent the environment? Again, apparently not as they are the ones giving permission for the environment to be destroyed.
The only people who get any form of representation from Mepa seem to be, oddly enough, developers! If I was a citizen of Malta or Gozo the question I would want answered is why are Mepa giving the green light to developments, which are effectively destroying the country's history? Given the position Mepa holds it is imperative that conflicts of interest do not arise.
Mepa chairman Andrew Calleja stated in his tirade against the FAA that he would definitely step down if any irregularities were to emerge. That's nice of him and to be honest I doubt if he would be missed. However, I would suggest that should any irregularities emerge Mr Calleja should not get the chance to step down as he put it. He should, in fact, be suspended along with the rest of the board pending legal action!
I am not writing this letter as a wake-up call to the people of Xaghra, because unfortunately they don't need it, but as a warning to every citizen of Malta and Gozo. The time has come to stand up to these environmental terrorists. They are trying to destroy Ramla l-Hamra and Hondoq ir-Rummien at the moment. Where will they attack next? How long before the developers and Mepa arrive in your village?
We do not own this world we live in. It is a gift from God who has been good enough to create it and make us mere custodians. We have an obligation to God to take care of it to the best of our ability. We also have a duty to our children as they have to theirs, to pass on the beauty that was passed to us by our parents and grandparents. What we do not have is the right to destroy what God has created in order to make a profit!
posted by Hondoq at
1:56 PM
