Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1498223
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 APRIL 2023 9 INTERVIEW Labour, not the party Authority'. Lawyers have to eat, too, after all; and you can't be- grudge them, for doing the job they're supposed to be doing, anyway. But when the lawyer in ques- tion also happens to be the Pres- ident of the Labour Party... sorry, but it's just not on. To put it an- other way: if I were both Lands Authority lawyer, and Labour Party president; and something like this cropped up – which is going to pit me against the resi- dents of an entire locality (not to mention, against the public in- terest, and the common good)... you can rest assured, I would not touch that case with a barge- pole. I would send someone else. I mean, come on... it stands to reason, doesn't it? You can't claim to be 'defend- ing the public interest', and 'upholding the principles of So- cialism'; while at the same time, 'prioritising the private interests, of people who have been making money out of occupying public land, for over 30 years'. In other words: you can't have your cake, and eat it... Wouldn't you say, however, that those two roles were all along 'incompatible', anyway? That party presidents should NOT also double up as 'lawyers representing public authori- ties', in the first place? I'm not so sure that they are necessarily 'incompatible', my- self. It all depends on how you actually perform in those two roles. For example: if, as Lands Authority lawyer, Ramona At- tard were to have taken the peo- ple's side – as should have been the case all along, really – there wouldn't be any 'conflict of in- terest', at all. Because the irony, in all this, is that the very first article in the Lands Authority Act states that the Authority has to administer its responsibilities, so as to "en- sure the best use of Government land". So in this particular case, the Lands Authority was actually breaching the first first article of the law it is supposed to be en- forcing. Let's face it: placing a pet- rol station, in a public garden that represents the only public space left, in one of Malta's most densely populated urban areas... that's not exactly 'the best use of Government land', is it? All the same, however, you are still an official representative of the Labour Party on the Gzira council; even if you clearly don't identify with that party anymore. Do you not see that as a conflict, either? At this stage, I would say I am representing the 'principles of the Labour Party', and not so much the party itself. Because, if I am a member of the PL at all... it's not because 'my father, or my grandfather, was Labour'. In fact: no one in my family is Labour, except for me. It's only because I believe in the principles of So- cialism; and as such, I want to be there, to defend the people who most need defending: the 'small' ['iz-zghir']; the downtrodden; the people who are being ex- ploited, etc. Those are my principles; and I will stick to them, no matter what. And in theory, they should be the Labour Party's principles, too. They are, after all, written in black-on-white, in the PL's own statute. So if the Labour Party is no longer following those princi- ples... it's not my problem, at the end of the day. It's theirs. Meanwhile, in an interview with our newspaper, PM Robert Ab- ela said that there are ongoing 'mediation efforts', between yourself and the party. Can you confirm whether any meetings have, in fact, taken place? Yes, there have been a few meetings; and further meetings are in the pipeline. I don't know if they're going to actually lead anywhere, naturally. But there is a dialogue happening. They know where I stand... Onto a separate (but related) issue: the traffic situation in Gzira, in general. The shocking murder of Pelin Kaya has once again underscored just how dangerous Gzira's streets have actually become (a fact that is separately confirmed by official traffic accident statistics). As mayor of that locality, what's your own explanation for this state of affairs? Why has Gzira become such a 'death-trap', for pedestrians? I'm not sure where to even begin, to be honest. But let me start with this: yes, Gzira has a shockingly high rate of serious traffic accidents. And ironically, most of Gzira's fatalities, over the years, have occurred on the seafront. You can include Pelin Kaya here, too: she died at the bottom of Testaferrata Street... less than 100 metres from the beginning of the Strand. And I say 'ironically', because if you go to France, Spain, or It- aly... the seafronts there are not like ours. They USED TO BE like ours, 40 years ago; but those countries recognised that 'sea- front areas' were being enjoyed by the general public; so they took the decision to remove all high-speed roads, and replace them with infrastructre that pri- oritises 'people, over cars'. Here in Malta, on the other hand: we've done the very op- posite. Take 'speed cameras', for instance: where have we actual- ly put them all, in this country? On all the main, arterial roads– the Regional Road, the Mrie- hel Bypass, etc – and NOT on the roads where they are most needed: in urban areas, where thousands of pedestrians have to cross the street, on a daily basis; and where the traffic needs to be 'calmed', the most... Now: I'm not saying that it was 'wrong' to install speed cam- eras in places like the Kappara Roundabout, or elsewhere: of course, they are needed there too. But why only there? Why not on the Gzira seafront: where so many people have died, or been severely injured? For let's face it: the Gzira Strand is a four-lane road. To get to the seafront promenade, you have to cross four lanes of very busy traffic. Now: do you know how many elderly people are afraid to actually go for a walk on the Gzira seafront, because of the risk of being 'run over' in the attempt? At the risk of an awkward ques- tion, though: isn't it your job, as mayor, to actually install those speed cameras – not to mention zebra-crossings (which I can confirm are sorely lacking in Gzira, even from my own daily experience)? Wait, why are you looking at me like that? [Exasperatedly] What, do you think I haven't tried? I've been applying to have all those things introduced, for years! Zebra crossings, for instance. If it were up to me, there'd be one at every single intersection in Gzira. Like the one right outside this office, for instance [between Rue D'Argens and Sliema Road]. That, in itself, is one of the busiest – if not THE busiest – traffic junction, in the entire country. And there isn't even a place for pedestrians to cross... Now: in other countries, you will see how busy intersec- tions like that always have ze- bra-crossings – or underground crossings, where possible – in the same 'corner' of the intersec- tion [relative to the direction of traffic] – so that motorists would be able to see where people were actually crossing the road. Here, on the other hand, peo- ple have no option but to just cross, from any or all directions at once. And then, people won- der why certain areas become 'accident black spots'... [Shaking his head]. No, I've been applying for zebra cross- ings, and speed cameras, and other traffic-calming measures, for literally years on end; but now, I've given up. After all, why should I – as the mayor of a locality - have to 'beg' the au- thorities, for these things? Isn't it obvious that they are needed? That they might save people's lives...? What's your own explanation, for the fact that the authorities have so consistently refused your demands, for so long? The only explanation, as far as I can see, is that: the authorities, in this country, always give priority to cars... never to people. Their only concern is to 'keep the traf- fic moving' – ideally as fast as possible – and that's it, really. Nothing else matters...