Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/410228
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 5 NOVEMBER 2014 News 4 JAMES DEBONO THE Malta Environment and Plan- ning Authority approved repair works on the vaulted ceiling just above the main door of the Mosta rotunda. The ongoing works will repair the damaged section of the vaulted ceiling covering the corridor of the church's portico. According to a document present- ed to MEPA by architects Lawrence Gatt and Innocent Centorrino the groin vault (the edge between the intersecting vaults) is heavily dam- aged and already constitutes "a danger to the public." "We are of the opinion that there is no need for any proof that the groin vault can be dangerous be- cause it's already heavily cracked" and the "angular voussirs (the wedge-shaped pieces forming the vault) are splitting off pieces of stone". The report reveals that some of the stones forming part of the gro- ined vault were "fortunately" re- moved before they fell down. In view of these safety considera- tions the architects did not want to carry out the works on site and in- sisted that the structure should first be dismantled and reconstructed. The architects in- sisted they could not take responsibility to undertake the repair works " just above the main door" of the church without re- moving the structure to reconstruct it, not- ing that "hundreds of tourists pass under- neath this dangerous structure" The new structure will be built with stone of the "best quality" chosen from quarries chosen by the contractor. It was the Arch- priest of Mosta, Fr Albert Buhagiar who commissioned the two architects to in- spect the site, which revealed the cracks in the vaulted ceiling. A restoration method statement detailing the works has been pre- sented. Architect Giorgio Grognet de Vasse designed the neo-classical church whose first stone was laid in 1833. The church was modelled on the Pantheon in Rome. Qala council wants quarry owners to repair roads Education Minister 'shames' Gozo Minister in parliament THE Qala local council is insisting that Road Constructions Limited should repair or resurface the road leading to the quarry which it uses and no permit should be issued until all planning irregularities on site are removed. "The road is full of pot holes and the local council cannot be expect- ed to surface a road which has been rendered in this state by the constant passage of heavily loaded trucks entering and leaving the quarry," a letter sent to the Malta Environ- ment and Planning Authority by the council's architect, Edward Scerri, states. MEPA will be meeting on 18 No- vember to determine an application to renew the permit for the quarry, which expired in 2010. The case of- ficer is recommending the approval of the permit. In its letter the council noted the proximity of the quarry to the Sant Antnin Fortress. The council is asking MEPA to impose a monetary contribution on the owners for the restoration of the monument. The council is also asking MEPA to specify the route which can be used by vehicles being driven from and to the quarry, in consultation with the council. It is also calling on MEPA to control dust emissions. The Qala council is lamenting that it has still not received the contri- bution due to it as part of the con- ditions of previous permits. The council also warned MEPA that if illegalities on site are not removed, the renewal would be in breach of the law. Stone from the Ta' Klement quarry in Qala is being used for the con- struction of the new parliament in Valletta. Italian contractor Filiberti claimed that one of the reasons for the delay in works related to the new parlia- ment was the continuous shortage of stone, which is quarried from the Ta' Klement quarry. In February MEPA's natural herit- age panel expressed concern that the quarry has been operating without a valid permit since November, 2010. An application to grant the quarry an environment permit is "on hold due to pending planning issues and active enforcements on site", accord- ing to the MEPA website. MIRIAM DALLI Gozo Minister Anton Refalo was left confronting the Opposition on his own after Education Minister Evarist Bartolo stood up and disa- greed with the way six ministers – himself included – replied to a question made by Nationalist MP Claudette Buttigieg. Buttigieg asked the ministers to state how many times, since their appointment in March 2013, had they travelled abroad, to which con- ference, the length of their stay and the total cost. The written question was made to Refalo, Bartolo, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna, Energy Minis- ter Konrad Mizzi, Social Solidar- ity Minister Michael Farrugia, Civil Liberties Minister Helena Dalli and Economy Minister Chris Cardona. But in their written reply, all six of them referred Buttigieg to a series of parliamentary questions relayed in parliament during the ninth leg- islature. Although similar in their replies, only Refalo shed some light on the reasoning behind their answer: "To abide by the practice introduced in Parliament by the previous adminis- tration on the collection of informa- tion which lacks a justification for the said request, I don't see a reason why this information should be col- lected." He went on to refer Buttigieg to a parliamentary question dating back to 6 June, 2001, which was an- swered by the then prime minister, Eddie Fenech Adami. The rest of the ministers referred Buttigieg to eight PQs tabled in par- liament during that same ninth leg- islature. Written parliamentary questions are still read out during the 30 min- utes allocated for PQs. So when Re- falo read out his reply, the Opposi- tion demanded a proper answer. PN MP Chris Said pointed out that the previous administration had always replied to such questions, "so much so that newspapers used to dedicate full pages to these expenses". Other PN MPs said it was clear that the question was made in the public interest, given that such trips are fi- nanced through taxpayers' money. In a bid to go round Refalo's written reply, the MPs started asking when was the last time he went abroad and, again, Refalo insisted that new ques- tions should be tabled. While Refalo struggled with MPs sitting on the opposite bench, Evarist Bartolo stood up and declared that he disagreed with the reply given. Needless to say, questions were then fired as to why he himself had answered in that way in the first place, with Bartolo explaining that PQs are answered by the technical staff. "I agree that information requested should be given. I have the same ques- tion and I agree that, while there was a Nationalist administration which wouldn't divulge this information, the succeeding administration used to answer these questions. "Had I seen this reply before, I would have given a different reply. We should follow the correct example and pro- vide the information," Bartolo said. Dangerous vault above Mosta rotunda's door to be repaired In all five companies had tendered for the casino licence CONTINUES FROM PAGE 1 Howev- er, Dragonara Gaming Ltd took the issue to court, objecting that Eden was also going to be award- ed a casino licence, arguing that their own financial offer was €3 million higher than Eden's. The court, presided by Mr Justice Joseph Micallef, ordered an in- junction over the granting of the casino licences until the issue is settled in court. "We await a clear explanation from the government, particu- larly when one considers that the tendering process had been go- ing on for a year and a half," the PN said in a statement. "Every- one knows that the company that had the best offer didn't get cho- sen. We expect Chris Cardona to explain what happened and what didn't happen in the process." But sources close to the gov- ernment told MaltaToday yes- terday that the application by Dragonara Gaming for the in- junction against the Finance and Economy ministries in connec- tion with the issue of the casino licence was an attempt to derail the whole process. "If they were serious about a li- cence they would not have com- menced legal proceedings – the interpretation is simple, they are trying to stall the whole process to protect their own operation," the sources said. The case has now been ap- pointed for hearing on Novem- ber 17. Sources close to the bidders told MaltaToday that the out- come of a technical committee presided by former Judge Geof- frey Valenzia decided in favour of Dragonara Gaming Ltd be- cause of its favourable business proposal. But the sources close to the government denied this, saying the conclusions by the technical committee were inconclusive. The government decision to is- sue a casino licence to Eden Lei- sure Group Ltd coincided with the announcement by the group that it would invest over €30 mil- lion to extend its operations in St George's Bay. The original expression of in- terest issued by the government was for one casino licence in Gozo and one in Malta. There were five applicants in all, one from Dragonara Gam- ing Ltd who offered an up-front concession fee of €4.3 million; Eden which offered a smaller fee of €1.25 million, and three other contenders, Polidano Group, the Corinthia Group and the Sea- bank Group. These three companies had made offers of around €1 mil- lion each. In February 2014, the Privatisation Unit said that there were two preferred bidders, Eden and Dragonara. It appears that in their appli- cation the Eden Leisure Group offered a business plan that in- dicated a greater contribution in terms of gaming tax from revenues. But their business plan projection was described as highly "unrealistic" by sources close to Dragonara. The damaged section in the rotunda's vaulted ceiling