Of Power and Toes

By Robert Louis Fenech

This week’s developments in the high rise saga have shown that when civil society comes together to prod the authorities in the right direction, we can achieve results. The Planning Authority was meant to decide on the TownSquare project, the first of these many proposed high rise developments to come up for approval, last Thursday. That morning, FAA filed a warrant of prohibitory injunction in court, stressing the need for further studies before accepting a project that would leave a permanent impact on Sliema and indeed the entire Maltese landscape. You would think that is an obvious point to the authorities, but no, civil society activists, like those in FAA, need to seek legal recourse even on such matters, which should not be up for contention. Later that day, we joined Sliema residents in their protest against the development’s rushed application process (note, not against high rise developments per se).

The subject here is power, and toes. These are odd and uneasy bedfellows, for power often steps on toes. That is its nature, and more so on a small island like ours. Problems arise when people hold different amounts of power, and particularly when power that is supposedly exercised on behalf of all citizens is instead exercised for the benefit of a few.

The goings-on regarding the high-rise developments is a case in point. Any such development in any corner of Malta willimpact just about everyone else. So why are they being rushed through the approval process? Why aren’t the proper studies being conducted? Why the hurry to forge ahead and make permanent changes to Malta’s landscape without the proper consultation? Not only was the law rushed through Parliament at the time, but now individual developments are also being rushed through the application process without the required studies.

This begs the question – what are they afraid of? It seems  that public scrutiny  is being avoided. When matters are resolved in the dark, when rubber stamp meets paper in some back office, power resides with those with deep pockets and good contacts. It is only when they are forced out into the open and fair regulations are respected, that the playing field is leveled.

People often respond to exhortations to take more of an active role with a coy, “but I don’t want to step on any toes.” Seemingly little care is given to the fact that developers and authorities are  bulldozing people’s toes. From flouting regulations to ignoring limits on work times to an utter lack of social impact awareness, it is they, not us, who are stepping on toes.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a tendency in Malta for civilians to take a back role in shaping their own destiny.  Some would say that this has historic roots, with over 2000 years of strongly hierarchical foreign rule, where even the smallest decision was taken out of the public’s hands, accompanied by a Church structure that did not give the public a say in this important part of their lives. Even after Independence, many governments withheld information and purposely kept people in the dark about their rights.

But let us not lose hope. Things can change, as long as we remain  vigilant and take a more active role in our destinies. The Government, in a week, U-turned from a position entirely against a temporary cessation of high rise developments to a position whereby some  applications have their approval blocked until a  holistic plan is drawn up. This is evidence of the power that resides in us, that we too can wield when necessary. Public scrutiny of large scale developments that will alter Malta should be the bare minimum of our demands, no matter whose toes we step on. Our own have been stepped on for long enough.