The proposal to build a road from Zabbar to Smart City which will obliterate 80 thousand square meters of agricultural land, the size of 11 football pitches, is the result of a vision buried under the financial interests of the few. Speakers made this point on behalf of ADPD – The Green Party in a press conference held near the Cottonera Lines fortifications which will lie next to the proposed development.
ADPD’s Deputy Secretary General Mario Mallia remarked that 30 cars everyday are being added to our already congested roads. The last thing that should be on the country’s mind given this stark reality is encouraging this pattern even further, rather than investing in alternative means of transport. ADPD expressed its agreement with the proposals made by Friends of the Earth suggesting the introduction of ferry transport between Valletta, Cospicua, and Smart City. This proposal is much more logical than the creation of yet another road that will gobble up more of the precious little agricultural land available.
During the inauguration of the Shoreline Complex in Smart City, the Prime Minister thanked the complex’s investors for providing an environment where families can spend their quality time together. If for the prime minister, spending quality time is equivalent to time spent in a shopping mall, then we strongly disagree with the Prime Minister. This, argued Mallia, betrays a warped vision that subjects everything, including families and their quality time to the whims of commercial interests.
“Children and their families in the south should be guaranteed the right to spend their quality time in fresh air and in open spaces, not in a commercial complex which robs the public of yet another piece of the country’s foreshore” argued Mallia. ADPD is therefore proposing that the San Klement park, which has recently been upgraded, be extended to include the Cottonera LInes, so that families, especially those from the south, have better facilities to recreate themselves in an open environment. Funds allocated to Project Green should not be used to mitigate the ongoing destruction of open spaces, but to generate and take care of the open spaces available.
The Chairperson of ADPD Sandra Gauci emphasised further that building the proposed road to Smart City will only serve those involved in speculation in Smart City itself. Gauci referred to the fact that back in 2007, the land at Smart City was handed over to a Dubai consortium at a pittance for 99 years to develop the area as an information technology hub. Indeed, the Project Development Statement originally tabled in parliament in 2007 only spoke of residential development to cater to the labour force working at Smart City itself. But much like the situation in the hospitals’ privatisation saga, when the Smart City concept failed to take off, rather than taking back the land, the government renegotiated an agreement that allowed speculation on this public land to include high-end real estate. “Public land keeps being dished out in a piecemeal fashion for fat cats to keep making a killing” Gauci insisted.
Gauci made a list of speculative developments that have characterised Smart City. These include the Shoreline development itself with 400 apartments and the shopping complex just inaugurated. There is also the approval for an 11-storey hotel and another block of 69 villas next to Smart City. Apart from these developments, Gauci referred to the relocation of the American University of Malta in return for the relinquishing of the proposed scandalous development of public and pristine land in Żonqor made available by the Muscat government. Lastly, the relocation of ITS which made way for the other scandalous DB development currently underway in St George’s Bay.
“All this goes on to show how the government is being held hostage by financial interests that leave the general public out in the cold in their own country, with public land being lost by the hour” argued Gauci. Gauci emphasised that ADPD is committed to protecting public interests together with other well-meaning individuals and organisations who understand that it pays to do so together in the common interest.
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Proposta li tiswa biss għal min qed iħaxxen butu
Il-proposta ta’ bini ta’ triq li twassal għal Smart City u li se tibla’ 80 elf metru kwadru ta’ art, id-daqs ta’ 11-il piċċ tal-futbol, ħafna minnha art agrikola, hija riżultat ta’ viżjoni soċjali mirduma taħt l-interessi tal-ftit. Dan qaluh kelliema għall-ADPD-The Green Party f’konferenza stampa biswit il-fortifikazzjonijiet tal-Kottonera Lines.
Id-deputat segretarju ġenerali ta’ ADPD Mario Mallia sostna li f’pajjiż li qed iżid 30 karozza kuljum fit-toroq tiegħu, l-aħħar ħaġa li jrid jagħmel huwa li jkompli jsostni din iż-żieda flok ma jinvesti fi ppjanar għal trasport alternattiv. ADPD taqbel mal-proposti tal-Friends of the Earth li ssuġġerew trasport bil-baħar bejn il-Belt, Bormla u Smart City. Dan jagħmel ħafna iktar sens milli t-teħid ta’ iktar art agrikola mill-ftit li fadlilna.
Meta ġie inawgurat il-kumpless kummerċjali fix-ShoreLine fi Smart City stess, il-prim ministru rringrazzja lill-investituri tax-Shoreline li pprovdew ambjent fejn il-familji jistgħu iqattghu ħin ta’ kwalita`. Jekk għal prim ministru, ħin ta’ kwalita’ mal-familja jfisser ħin f’kumpless kummerċjali, mela mhux qed naqblu mad-definizzjoni ta’ ħin ta’ kwalita’. Dan, tenna Mallia, juri l-viżjoni ta’ tmexxija li trid iġġib il-familji tallaba tal-kummerċ anke biex jirrikreaw ruħhom.
“It-tfal u l-familji tagħhom min-nofsinhar ta’ Malta għandu jkollhom il-jedd li l-ħin ta’ kwalita` iqattgħuh fl-arja u l-ftuħ mhux fl-għeluq ta’ kumpless kummerċjali f’binja li serqet biċċa oħra mit-tgawdija tal-kosta mill-pubbliku” sostna Mallia. ADPD għaldaqstant tipproponi li l-park ta’ San Klement li għadu kemm ġie rrranġat, jiġi estiż u jkompli tul-il-Cottonera Lines kollha bir-rijabilitazzjoni tal-fortifikazzjonijiet biex tabilħaqq il-familji speċjalment dawk fin-nofsinhar ta’ Malta ikollhom fejn jirrekreaw ruħhom f’ambjent miftuħ, u mhux magħluq ġo kumpless kummercjali kif issuġġerixxa l-Prim Ministru. Il-flus ta’ Project Green m’għandhomx jintefqu biex ipattu, b’mod imqanżah, għal spazji miftuħa li qed jinbelgħu minn iktar bini u toroq, imma għandhom jintużaw biex l-ispazji miftuħa jiġu ndukrati, temm jghid Mallia.
Iċ-Chairperson tal-ADPD Sandra Gauci qalet li il-bini ta’ din it-triq se sservi biss biex taqdi lil min minn Smart City qed iħaxxen butu. Gauci fakkret li fit-2007, l-art fix-Xgħajra kienet ingħatat mill-parlament Malti lil konsorzju mid-Dubai bi prezz redikolu għal 99 sena, sabiex iż-żona tigi żviluppata f’belt tal-informatika. Ta’ min jgħid li fil-Project Description Statement oriġinali ta’ Smart City li kien ġie ppreżentat lill-Parlament fl-2007, il-bini ta’ residenzi kellu jkun limitat biex jaqdi l-ħaddiema li kellhom jiġu mpjegati fi Smart City. Iżda bħal ma ġara fil-każ tal-isptarijiet bil-Vitals u Stewart, flok ma l-gvern ħa lura l-art pubblika wara li l-kuntratt ma giex onorat u Smart City ma saritx, il-gvern innegozja din l-art pubblika biex tiġi spekulata għal bini ta’ residenzi lussuzi. Din l-art pubblika mal-kosta issa qed tingħata biċċa biċċa għall-bini biex ikomplu jħaxxnu buthom ċerti nies.
Gauci fakkret fl-ispekulazzjoni rampanti fi Smart City, bl-approvazzjoni mill-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar ta’ 400 appartament lussuż fix-Shoreline li għadu kemm ġie inawgurat, u l-approvazzjoni ta’ lukanda ta’ 11-il sular u binja ta’ 128 appartament f’Awwissu tal-2023 fuq l-istess art. Ma dan żdiedet ukoll applikazzjoni għal 69 villa taħt Santu Rokku biswit Smart City. Gauci fakkret ukoll li l-inħawi se jaraw ir-rilokazzjoni tal-Universita` Amerikana ta’ Malta (AUM) wara li dawn, b’mod skandaluż, ingħataw art verġni fiż-Żonqor Marsaskala mill-gvern ta’ Joseph Muscat, kif ukoll ir-rilokazzjoni tal-ITS li ġiet ttrasferita mill-bajja ta’ San Ġorġ biex tagħmel spazju għall-iżvilupp massiċċ u skandaluż ieħor tad-DB.
“Dan kollu juri gvern iddaħħal fil-but mill-interessi finanzjarji a skaptu tal-interessi taċ-ċittadini li jibqgħu jittewwbu u jaraw l-art pubblika titnaqqrilhom bis-sigħat” tenniet Gauci. Gauci temmet tgħid li ADPD ser tibqa’ t-tarka taċ-ċittadin flimkien ma dawk kollha ta’ rieda tajba li qed jifhmu li jiswilhom li jingħaqdu għall-interess komuni.
