Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/424604
A dog was rescued by animal wel- fare officers and transferred to the San Frangisk animal welfare centre in Ta' Qali after someone tried to suffocate the animal to death. MaltaToday is informed that dis- trict police officers are investigat- ing the case and are on the hunt for the perpetrator. The dog, dumped in a sack with its head in a plastic bag, was found in Handaq. A rope was tied around its neck. Fortunately, the dog was still alive when it was found. In a statement, the parliamentary secretariat for animal welfare said the dog was in a grievous condition, but stable. Parliamentary secretary Roder- ick Galdes condemned the animal abuse and informed the police of the incident, after the report was originally filed with the animal welfare department. Galdes urged anyone with information on the case to come forward and contact the police or the animal welfare de- partment on freephone 1717. MEPA denies breach of enforcement notice THe Malta environment and Plan- ning Authority has denied being in breach of an enforcement notice issued on a Zejtun farmhouse be- longing to Minister Helena Dalli and her husband Patrick. In reply to allegations levelled by the Opposition that MePA broke the law when it heard the case regarding the application by the minister's spouse to sanction ille- galities on the farmhouse, the au- thority said that enforcement no- tice eCF563/11 "was not breached as no further construction works took place since 2012". The authority said the enforce- ment notice had been issued fol- lowing an onsite inspection on 29 March, 2012. Photos taken on 14 November, 2014 by MePA officials, compared with those taken in 2012, confirmed that no further con- struction works had taken place. "The only works that were noted on site were the deposition of soil mounds and inert material near the pool area," the authority said. "Following this it was concluded that the enforcement notice was not breached, as no further con- struction works took place since 2012." Nationalist MP Ryan Callus yes- terday said it was scandalous that none of the MePA board members asked or raised doubts over the il- legal works carried out on site after the enforcement notice had been issued in 2012. "The reason is that the above position had been communicated through a minute in the relative file by the enforcement Directorate. The Commission did not decide the case last week but deferred the public hearing and requested the applicant to submit more detailed information pertaining to the site. This information needs to be as- sessed by the Planning Directorate prior to a decision to be taken by the ePC," MePA said. The Opposition has asked the Ombudsman to investigate the case. This week, Patrick Dalli ap- peared before a MePA board, hear- ing submissions for sanctioning of works being carried out on the property. maltatoday, Sunday, 30 november 2014 News Police on the hunt for person who nearly suffocated dog to death The dog rescued is now being treated at the San Frangisk animal welfare centre (Photo: Animal Welfare Department)