[WATCH] ‘MIDI left Fort Manoel gates open on purpose’ – Gzira mayor

Gzira mayor suggests consortium ordered security staff to leave fort's gates wide open

Gzira mayor Conrad Manche has accused MIDI of leaving a side door to Fort Manoel open on purpose, after the development consortium claimed that protestors vandalised the historic fort over the weekend.

“I was at Manoel Island last weekend, saw people inside Fort Manoel and wondered how they had gained access,” he told MaltaToday. “The vice-mayor and I went on a search and found the side doors to the fort by the pitch wide open, with the padlocks unlocked.

“Indeed, Kamp Emergenza Ambjent (KEA) activists later told me that they had asked security officials to close the fort’s gates, but were told that they were under orders by MIDI to leave them open. It is clear from pictures that I have uploaded on Facebook that all damages to the fort took place before last weekend, but if any vandalism took place last weekend it is MIDI’s fault.”

Conrad Borg Manche and a group of KEA activists on Saturday broke open a side gate of Manoel Island in a major environmental protest. However, MIDI have since installed two new metal gates to block the public from entering Manoel Island.  

MIDI chief executive Luke Coppini claimed on Tuesday that some protestors resorted to vandalism at Fort Manoel, allegations that were instantly shot down by Borg Manche and KEA.

Indeed, Borg Manche said that he had found a side door to Fort Manoel open on the day of the protest, after which he and the activists decided to lock access to the historic fort specifically to prevent vandalism.

After the Gzira local council filed a judicial protest demanding that MIDI open up access to the Manoel Island foreshore to the public, Luke Coppini told MaltaToday that opening the gates on a permanent basis could risk vandalism and drug abuse on the island.

Borg Manche also questioned why MIDI are “making a show” of installing a new metal gate behind the main gate, claiming that the consortium had opened it themselves after last weekend’s protest.

“After we opened the side gate on Saturday, Coppini emailed me to tell me that there was no need to break through because the main gate was already open to the public,” he said. “If, as the signs affixed on the gates are claiming, people are not allowed to enter Manoel Island because they will be trespassing on private property, then why had they left the main gate open?”

Thousands of people flocked to Manoel Island over the past few days, to swim, fish, picnic or simply explore the area.

“I believe that that’s what the island should be used for. I cannot understand why the most beautiful areas on the island are constantly handed over to private companies for them to enjoy by themselves, leaving the rest of us with pavements and cars,” Borg Manche said. “That is unacceptable for me, and I urge the Maltese public to rise up to send a message that these people cannot just do as they please.”