Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1440009
3 LETTERS & EDITORIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 JANUARY 2022 Mikiel Galea Letters & Clarifications Appreciation, Albert Fenech IT is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of Professor Al- bert Fenech. After some years as a visiting cardiol- ogist from the United Kingdom, treating many patients-always with a kind and sympathetic demeanour, Albert estab- lished the first Maltese-led Cardiology Unit at St Luke's Hospital, providing a year-round service. Under his guidance, the Unit went on to provide cutting edge procedures on a par with the best else- where. In 2002, he was made a member of the National Order of Merit on Republic Day for his services to the country. He was Founder President of the Maltese Cardiac Society which pre- sented him with the Society Award in recognition of his services to cardiol- ogy. Professor Fenech was elected to Parliament in 2013, and always tried to contribute to improve the cardio- logical services for our patients. He has gone to a better place – and will be sorely missed by many. May he rest in peace. Terence Tilney, Maltese Cardiac Society Childish controversies EVERY year, in backward Malta, a lot of fuss is made over some superstition or other. Last year, it was the lack of childish cribs at the European parliament. This year, it's the procession of so-called "baby Jesus". On one occasion, I watched this procession by the followers of "tal- Muzew", as they paraded a doll-like effigy through the street. The origin of this mummery was the reactionary response of the sancti- monious Dun Ġorg Preca to Manwel Dimech's statement that "God is not a bambien". John Guillaumier St Julian's Perspective on Christmas I have watched closely the tribulations of the Maltese islands over that storm in a teacup: the 'cancel-Christmas' brouhaha prompted by elements of the right-wing press in Italy against Helena Dalli. As a commuter between Brussels and Luxem- bourg, and a friend of both Maltese and Italian residents of both cities, I was dou- bly intrigued to learn that Italian art critic Vittorio Sgarbi was – within the very same week of the controversy – lauding the artworks of Maltese artist Patrick Dalli while calling out the European Commissioner in Brussels "a cretin". I digress. As I understand it, Dalli's proposed internal staff guidelines ex- horted the tax-paid civil servants of the European institutions not to assume that the people they dealt with on a daily basis – the taxpayers themselves – might be Christians. And indeed she is right. Who knows whether these 'faceless bureaucrats' and civil servants are speaking to co-workers or Europeans who might be Muslim, Jewish, or whatever other denomina- tion… and perhaps, do they also auto- matically confer "Eid Mubarak" to all and sundry at the end of each Ramadan in their email signatures? My experience tells me no, even though in the last 10 years I have seen Christmas being em- braced by the more liberal elements of every faith. But that is only thanks to Christmas having an equally important, non-Christian connotation that makes it part and parcel of European life, wintry weather, and end-of-year holidays. The fact remains that Dalli's guidelines were ill-timed (right before Christmas!), yet wilfully misinterpreted by the Euro- pean right, and then not supported by the Commission itself. I was disappointed at seeing some Maltese – as I gathered through social media – enjoy the show of disparage- ment of these guidelines. The far-right voices in Italy who politicised the guide- lines are precisely the same people who do not believe in things like solidarity on migrant rescues, for example – to the detriment of Malta. Some perspective, please! Claire Schiff Ixelles, Brussels