The Convention ‘Idea Ambjent’ was an initiative by the PN, the intention of it was to listen to the general public, including various NGOs, on issues having to do with our country’s environment. This initiative is about what is needed for us to tackle one of our countries utmost problems, the environment, a problem that has resulted from limited space, greed and corruption. The positive thing that came out of the convention is that the PN is taking the environment very seriously, admits past errs with the intention of not repeating them, and more importantly, is prepared to take feasible action to ensure that future generations enjoy a cleaner and more sustainable kind of environment. An imperative for this to happen is that we create a holistic plan for our country, envisaging what we’d like it to be like in the future.
The PL government is spellbound by scenes of Dubai, highrise buildings and development everywhere is what they envisage for our country’s future. They are attracted by concrete and money, forgetting people’s needs, nothing else seems to matter for Joseph Muscat and his friends but money. PN’s answer to this is that Malta is not Dubai, our characteristics are there for us to cherish and be proud of, they go beyond money. Our urban and rural environment are unique, and it is our duty to preserve this uniqueness for future generations to enjoy. This is not possible if political parties make closed door deals before general elections, as the PL did with some developers prior to 2013, when they callously disregarded our urban and rural environment to the detriment of us citizens.
This kind of greed is not only bad for our pockets, but also for the environment that we live in. Corruption entails allowing greed to illicitly take over, it robs people of what is there’s by right. Greed is what will ruin Zonqor Point and might also rob us of the unique beauty in Mgarr ix-Xini in Gozo. It is what has caused the uglification of our urban spaces, because of a kind of architecture that has been stripped of aesthetic pride. It is this brainwave of an idea that the right thing to do with abandoned development in the countryside is to build villas and more concrete. For Joseph Muscat, agro-tourism means building hotels and spas on virgin land. This is what was allegedly negotiated by him and some developers on the 4th floor in the PL’s headquarters before the 2013 election, and this is what former PL Deputy Leader Dr. Anġlu Farrugia meant when he said that PL were getting too close to the construction industry.
In saying this, I am not suggesting that the PN should become anti-development, but that development should be to the benefit of a common good. As the PN economic document says, the economy should be of service to the people, not the other way round, and the same should apply to development. We cannot afford to continue building on ODZ land, a moratorium is necessary at this point in time, as land is limited and precious. As far as urban architecture is concerned, we need to find ways of ensuring that new buildings are aesthetically acceptable, and that we preserve older buildings i.e. those which are of architectural and/or of historical value. In this manner, we are being innovative to the benefit of development, whilst preserving our urban and rural spaces for future generations to enjoy. Development could be a good thing for making our urban environment look better and, for making urban space better equipped for the needs of civil society.
This article was publised in The Times of Malta on Monday 8th February.
Justin Schembri is a PN candidate.
