Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1406390
9 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 01 SEPTEMBER 2021 What would have been the use of electing a Labour government if it is bound to carry out the decisions taken by a Nationalist govern- ment? Moreover, Labour itself had disregarded the local plan when it transferred land for the devel- opment of the Jordanian-owned American University on land zoned as a national park in the local plan. The local plan cited by the present government as justi- fication for the marina also links this development to residential and commercial development as part of the redevelopment of the ex-National Swimming Pool pitch site. This raises the question on whether the present government is also bound by this part of the approved local plan. Continuity with Muscat? The intention to develop a ma- rina in Marsaskala was already announced by the Muscat admin- istration in the Budget Speech for 2017 as part of an ongoing strategy to improve Malta's pro- file as a yachting centre. This was followed by a call for bids for the design, construction and opera- tion of a yacht marina in Marsas- kala Bay issued in June 2018. This suggests that Abela has inherited this decision from his disgraced predecessor. He was also probably misled by the absence of a strong public reaction to previous plans, ignoring the fact that the mood in the country for development projects has changed over the past few years. It also suggests that Labour is bound by some understanding with an invisible but strong and persistent lobby aimed at the commercialisation of Marsaskala. In this sense the marina is one more piece in the jigsaw, in a pro- cess which included the transfer of the national pool and surround- ing ODZ land to Sadeen Group, the zoning of the Jerma area for the development of 170 apart- ments in eight-storey high blocks, the development of a massive wa- terpolo club with a restaurant on 2,300sq.m of reclaimed seabed right in the middle of the bay, and a mysterious design contest for the regeneration of the area by the Malta Tourisim Authority. And this explains why Abela is so keen to emphasise that "some sort of investment has to happen in the Marsaskala area" and that a breakwater would be beneficial during periods of rough seas to avoid having garbage or dirt rise from the sea to the seafront. Abela went as far as lamenting that the public takes a knee-jerk reaction to the announcement of large-scale projects like the Mar- saskala marina. "As a country, we can't go in the direction of saying no to everything when we haven't even started talking," he stated. But faced with the under-hand- ed manner through which the ma- rina has been proposed in a tender document aimed for bidders and not for the general public, how did Abela expect the public to react? For it is opaque moves like this one which feed the kind of public scepticism which annoys Robert Abela. In this sense, the consultation process is skewed, with businessmen interested in the marina project being given precedence over the local community Faced with the under-handed manner through which the marina has been proposed, how did Abela expect the public to react?