Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1476201
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 MARCH 2022 OPINION 3 LETTERS & EDITORIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 AUGUST 2022 Mikiel Galea Letters & Clarifications Mario Mallia: use of St Albert College premises IN their right of reply, the College Board of St. Albert College claimed that one of the bones of contention between them and headmaster Mr. Mallio Mallia concerns the use of the school premises by unauthorised third parties. We are here writing as third parties who used the premises on sev- eral occasions as indicated in the rest of the letter. All of us – in different capacities, cir- cumstances and contexts – were friends of the Dominican Frei Joao Xerri, who passed away in 2021. More than a dec- ade ago, two or three came out with the idea of having Joao, us and whoever else was interested in joining in, celebrate mass in a manner that is somehow reminiscent of the celebration of Mass in Latin America. The emphasis here is on joy, participation and on reading to- gether the world in terms of the Word. A group – made of the undersigned and some others – informally, unsys- tematically and chaotically got together. Obviously, we had a logistical concern; we needed a place where to hold the celebration. Fortunately, on a number of occasions on our first encounters – including one Christmas Eve we remember very fondly – Mario Mall- ia decided to offer the premises of St Albert College (other venues were also used later on). There was no common denominator to our group except for the fact that we became fond of this different manner of celebrating mass; a mass where we were felt fellows not spectators. Through the initiative we came together de- spite different social backgrounds, and contrasting political allegiances. We congregated in spite of our different professional backgrounds (some are former dock workers, many – including Mario – work in the teaching sector at various levels, some were housewives, while some were Dominican novices). We assembled despite different types and levels of militancy and engagement if any. We got together for this celebra- tion of the word and of the Eucharist regardless of our different attitudes to- wards the church. Indeed, some in the group felt, or used to feel at the time, quite distant from the institution for various reasons; personal, political or both. Some had no such problems with the ecclesiastical institution, but none- theless came to this celebration because they wanted to engage in something that is different from the standard mass that is celebrated in parishes (without this being tantamount to lack of respect for or appreciation of the latter). Through this letter, we do not want to throw our hat in regarding the claims that were made in the letter of reply in relation to the use of the premises of the College. We shall not side with Mr Mallia or the board regarding such claims, though we do believe that ex- clusions and expulsions do not create peaceful and harmonious schools and places of work and that, regardless of who is in the right, resolution and not scapegoating is desirable and appropri- ate. We are simply writing to show our gratitude for the fact that Mario would allow us third parties to use the prem- ises of the college for this celebration. Thanks to his initiative we were, and felt we were, Church. Carmel Borg, Kenneth Busuttil, Patrizia Busuttil, Mario Cardo- na, Maria Dolores Cauchi, Ruth Cauchi, Antonio Dato, Catherine Dato, Mario Gerada, Michael Grech, Adrian Grima, Nathalie Grima, Rafel Grima, Peter Mayo, Alfred Sant Fournier, Maria Sant Fournier, Maria Stella Vassallo Guide dogs and scooters SCOOTERS can be seen as a positive development, only if the rules appli- cable to their use are improved and properly enforced. However, this has not been the case so far, as evidenced by numerous complaints received from the visually-impaired. In fact, the dan- gerous driving and the careless aban- donment of scooters cause inaccessi- bility and represents a serious danger to the visually impaired, who move around on their own with the support of a white cane or a guide dog. In order to mitigate and possibly eliminate this negative effect on the vis- ually-impaired, the Malta Guide Dogs Foundation thinks the following should urgently be addressed: 1. Since scooters are silent, these should make an acous- tic signal, such as hooting the horn and also slow down, when approaching a visually-impaired person aided by a white cane or a guide dog; 2. Scooters should not be carelessly abandoned on footpaths and pedestrian areas, so as to block the way, adding to the many other obstacles that unfortu- nately already exist; 3. Authorities need to enhance enforcement and see that the use of scooters does not impinge on the safety and independence of visual- ly-impaired persons. Unless these points are quickly addressed, the risk is that many vis- ually-impaired will increasingly feel discouraged to go out on their own! Consequently, the precious work per- formed by the Malta Guide Dogs Foun- dation so far and which gave such per- sons a greater degree of independence in their mobility, simply risks going lost. Charlotte Cilia Treasurer, MGDF