Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1540549
I often wonder and marvel at the sheer determination of our forebears. A tiny country fresh out of independence, soon to become a fledgling republic vying for attention in the mid- dle of an oft troubled sea, at the crossroads of Europe, Af- rica and the Middle East. To say that it must not have been easy, would be mocking their memory, their fortitude, their resourcefulness. Because, let us face it, they must have toiled to make ends meet. Vincent Mo- ran, a medical doctor, was a stal- wart of the political landscape of the time. How he managed to stomach the health ministry portfolio for more than 10 long years is beyond my comprehen- sion but make no mistake—this man was a crucial architect of our national health service as we know it. He expanded St Luke's Hospital, delivered the Karin Grech extension and staffed them. He was a general practitioner to boot and put in endless hours of top doctoring in his community in the south. As if that was not quite enough, on the international stage he pushed and helped develop the concepts of primary care and care of older persons which are today's key mainstays. It is no coincidence, therefore, that the brand-new regional health hub in the south bears his name. Holistic service provision Censu Moran Regional Health Centre is a €50 million pro- ject which was delivered by the Foundation for Medical Services (FMS). It is the only such centre of its kind because it is an amalgam of the prima- ry, secondary and tertiary level care. Its architectural beauty and environmental credentials are striking. It is situated in the heart of the south of the island which has yearned for such a clinical development. The cen- tre was conceived and baptised with a holistic and dynamic service provision in mind. Our strategy is simple—extract as many day-case services from Mater Dei Hospital as possible. This will not only decant ser- vices away from this mammoth institution, but it will also allow Mater Dei to develop and flour- ish as a centre of excellence for expanded in-patient care concentrating on medical and surgical emergencies, severe trauma, complex conditions and operations requiring high dependency and intensive care. I must congratulate the FMS and the many private con- tractors that worked tirelessly together to equip, finish and commission the building. The hand-over to Secondary Care proceeded in a measured tone running parallel with steady certification and licensing to the highest standards of safety and quality. Despite our zeal and may I say impatience to open its doors to patients, and in order to avoid unavoidable teething logistical problems, we decid- ed to introduce the services in a phased and staggered fashion. With ample car-parking space, a sprawl of exquisitely appoint- ed clinical rooms, state of the art equipment, gym facilities and person-friendly flows, the centre is already offering some 50 services since its soft open- ing just a couple of months ago. To date, over 22,000 patients have been seen and treated here. This suggests that Censu Moran will potentially cater for more than the 100,000 patients envisaged in the past. The translocation of prima- ry care services from the dated Paola Health Centre to Censu Moran is complete. Primary care staples include 24/7 first contact with general practition- ers, nurse-led clinics, speech and language pathology, physi- otherapy, ophthalmic care and screening, blood-letting, the well-baby clinic, podology, im- munisation and plain radiog- raphy. Secondary care involves the service of several specialists tending to referrals from prima- ry care. Censu Moran is offer- ing these services in gynaecol- ogy, dentistry, various medical specialities, cardiology, gastro- enterology and general surgery. Indeed, the two commissioned operating theatres will offer a range of endoscopies and day- case operations in multiple spe- cialities. We are preparing an extra two endoscopy rooms. Tertiary care is super-special- ised health care wherein spe- cialists refer to other specialists. Currently this is being offered in gastrointestinal pH and ma- nometry testing, immunology, a first in Malta; liver and pancre- atic surgery and soon capsule endoscopy. In just under one year, over a thousand patients have benefitted from the porta- ble MRI scanner parked at Cen- su Moran parking lot. It is our intention to have permanent MRI and CT scan capability by tapping into EU ERDF funds. Infrastructure is important but it is nothing without our employees. I take this oppor- tunity to thank them for their dedication to the patient. THOSE who apply for an exemption for vehicle registration tax would need to show they lived 24 months outside Mal- ta from the date of the issuance of the residency document. This was held in a judgment delivered by the Administrative Review Tribunal on 9 October 2025. The case was Guido Gijbels vs Finance Minis- try et. The applicant asked the tribunal to over- turn a decision in which his application to have an exemption from the motor vehi- cle registration tax was rejected. Gijbels explained that he applied for the exemp- tion in August 2024, after he immigrated to Malta from the UK in July. He applied for his residency card at the end of July. The board at the Ministry of Finance asked for more information in August but Identity Malta's appointment for the residency card took longer. None- theless, Gijbels passed on a list of docu- ments, his employment history and energy bills in the UK. In October 2024, he was informed in writing that his application for the tax exemption was refused. The applicant insisted that he qualified for this exemption. The ministry disputed the applicant's claim, insisting he did not show that he lived abroad for a continuous period of 24 months. To register his residency, he had to file a number of documents in original. There was an exchange of emails with the minis- try on the subject. The applicant explained further that he was following the instruc- tions of the competent authorities and ac- cused the ministry of misguiding him on the options available to him. The chairman of the board within the Finance Ministry testified that the appli- cant became a Maltese resident at the end of August, but he was already in Malta. Therefore, he was not a continuous res- ident outside Malta for the previous 24 months. He denied suggesting giving hints that the applicant qualified for the exemp- tion. The chairman insisted that the 24 months start from when the Maltese res- idency card is issued. The Tribunal held that Article 19(3)(f) of the Motor Vehicles Registration and Li- censing Act reads: "(3) The following motor vehicles shall, upon registration with the Authority, be ex- empt from the payment of registration tax (f)any M1 motor vehicle or a cycle which is the personal property of a private indi- vidual and is being brought permanently into Malta by the individual when he is transferring his normal residence from a place outside Malta to a place in Malta, provided that the vehicle qualifies for such exemption. The said exemption shall be given under those conditions, restrictions or limitations prescribed by the minister responsible for finance." The conditions lay down that the ap- plicant of the exemption must have been outside Malta for the previous 24 months from having his ordinary residence. Addi- tionally, the applicant must apply before he becomes a Maltese ordinary resident. The applicant held that he had to come to Malta before applying to make the nec- essary preparations. Subsidiary legislation defines "transfer of residence" as the actual transfer of the ordinary residence of a per- son from a place outside Malta to a place in Malta with the date of transfer being the date of issue of the residence document or the date as declared with the Commission- er for Revenue in the case of Maltese ap- plicants". Therefore, the law states that the resi- dence document is the document which the board considers as the starting point. The Tribunal disagreed with how the board was interpreting the law. The law then allows that a person would still be resident outside Malta until a residency card is issued. In this case although the applicant arrived in July, since the residen- cy card was issued in August 2024, then that date is when one is to calculate the 24 months. If the interpretation of the law would be as the board is adopting, then nobody would be eligible for the exemp- tion. A person who applies for a residence document, must be in Malta to do the bi- ometrics. The tribunal upheld the applicant's claims and annulled the board's decision. 8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 OCTOBER 2025 OPINION & LAW Ministry's interpretation of the law makes it impossible to comply with The centre was conceived and baptised with a holistic and dynamic service provision in mind MALCOLM MIFSUD Mifsud & Mifsud Advocates Censu Moran Regional Health Centre: A living project Jo Etienne Abela Health minister