9th January 2012
Work
started early today, with more loading of debris into trucks to be
carted away. Despite last Saturday's events, there was nobody to man the
hose and wash the trucks' tyres as they left the site.
MEPA enforcement was duly contacted again and fresh photos taken and sent to the said directorate. (see below).
These photos clearly showed the mess and renewed non-compliance despite everything!
The usual case officer eventually turned up shortly before noon. Work was not stopped but the trucks leaving the site after his inspection were being cleaned before leaving the site.
HPM is asking for regulatory
action to be taken at once and these constant breaches appropriately addressed with no further delay.HPM is also demanding that the case officers be re-assigned and is expecting MEPA to do its duty to the full.
MEPA's soft-handedness and blatant, proven, reluctance to enforce its own rules and its complicity with these defaulters is absolutely unacceptable. From this moment, HPM shall be taking the case abroad, and is requesting the EU and other concerned bodies of international standing to launch an investigation into the way MEPA is playing around with legislation and residential rights.
In contrast, HPM has done its utmost to collaborate with MEPA. It is factually only through our constant reports and prompts, always fully substantiated and meticulously documented with facts and precise details, that any action has been taken part.
The following photos show SOIL being mixed with rock-spoil and carted away by the truckload. This despite permit conditions and related regulations obliging the developers to save the soil.
10 - "Any soil on the site shall not be built over but shall be collected for reuse. A permit from the Director of Agriculture is required to remove the soil from the site. All soil shall be deposited at the place indicated by the Director of Agriculture."
The above is condition 10 of the permit. One also finds that the permit is SUBJECT TO all and every condition.
Had our volunteers not constantly devoted their time and energy to ensuring that on site, the law was being observed, the developer would have committed the innumerable infringements reported in this website, and to the authority, unnoticed and unhindered.
What about the many sites, all over the Maltese islands that are being similarly abused. Having dealt and seen first hand, the way MEPA acts and reacts, we have no doubt that any proper investigation by a higher authority would confirm that despite the reforms, nothing much has changed at MEPA.
HPM is currently working on a report in order to initiate legal action on the terms of maladministration.
We are also raising a petition. In just under 3 weeks, more than 14,000 people have signed. Forms are downloadable from our home page, right at the top.
21st January 2012
Works on site are proceeding at an alarming rate! Yesterday, excavation and similar heavy work was carried out from 7.00am to 5.45pm non-stop.
The weight of the trucks has also started to damage adjacent structures. More evidence pending upload within the next 48 hours.
HPM has now taken its case abroad, but more shall be divulged later on this week. If MEPA is ready to be a willing accomplice to proven ongoing illegalities, we are not!
Close to 18,000 people have signed the petition already. HPM appeals to everyone to verify the facts on our website first, then signing our petition. Forms may be downloaded from our home page.
HPM OBJECTS
TO YET ANOTHER APPLICATION
30th March 2012
A new application has recently been submitted
for a plan that now excludes the basement and further digging.
HPM is submitting a detailed and fully substantiated objection, based on several points of law and other concerns. Most of these points are amply elaborated and expanded within this website.
Amongst others, objections have also been put in by the Mosta Local Council, Nature Trust, FAA and Wied il-Ghasel Residential Association. A copy of our
objection and instructions of how to object may be found on
In the meantime, we would like you to ponder the following:
For what reason would any developer, out of his own free will and initiative, decide to submit an application that excludes at least 2 subterranean levels and further reduce his building footprint, when already in possession of a valid permit to do so?
On another note, public signature-collection points are being re-established in the coming week, at City Gate and in other areas at random, in order to complete the petition.
This after a pause necessitated by inclement weather and other factors. Our legal team has been instructed to initiate procedures to ensure that the petition is submitted as soon as possible after its completion, and in the correct form and method as to avoid delays or errors in the process.
Any help in gathering signatures remains appreciated. We shall be advising a cut-off date soon, so anyone still collecting signatures is kindly asked to complete whatever is in hand and to hand or mail them to us.
A former post concerning damages to properties in the area has been removed since it contains some elements which require further verification or which may be impossible to prove, at least by HPM.
HPM is always very careful in making statements of any sort, and every effort is made to ensure that any information we upload here is always verified fully and substantiated by fact. If any doubts arise, or anything we write post here is deemed to be incomplete or imprecise, immediate steps are taken to either correct or remove any such material.
Apart
from all the above, and our intentions and efforts to be precise and
correct, we shall soon be expanding several sections of our website.
We were also planning to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Rotunda Bombing but the Wied il-Ghasel issue still takes considerable manpower and focus, and the new local council legislature takes its seat as from the 1st April.
We hope to be able to stage an exhibition or manifestation later on this year, and also hope the new council shall be more interested in promoting and safeguarding Mosta's endangered ecological and historical features.
A study of the said aspects, and their current level of preservation is also long overdue, but we do not have the resources, finances and logistics to do so right now.
It is a known, and sad fact that despite the majority of Malta's citizens stating that they love our history and culture, very few are ready to back that up in any significant way.
MASSIVE 24,000+
SIGNATURE PETITION SUBMITTED TO PRESIDENT OF MALTA
