Sliema – A building site that needs proper governance

My main priority as Sliema local council candidate on behalf of Alternattiva Demokratika - The Green Party is to ensure that the quality of life of Sliema residents is given priority over the inconvenience caused by big developers and careless contractors.

Sliema is a case study of a failed local council. The locality is practically run by big contractors who do not observe construction regulations, both as regards construction as well as regards transport used.

Various construction projects are characterised by daily inconvenience to residents and by blatant cases of lack of enforcement: the so-called protective "green nets" used for hoarding are a case in point.

Very often, such nets are simply ceremonial rags that make a parody of the Environmental Management Construction Site Regulations.

Roads and pavements in Sliema are disgraceful, to the detriment of pedestrians and drivers alike. Potholes, broken pavements and uneven infrastructure are practically everywhere around the locality.

Contractors often carry out shoddy work, and construction trucks are frequently overloaded, thus causing damage to roads, pavements, sewage systems and so forth. Once again, I invite Transport Malta to publish reports on such inspections and on enforcement carried out on overloaded trucks.

If elected in Sliema Local Council I will continue the work I did when I was councillor between 2003 and 2009, where I introduced a culture of consultancy with residents, and where Sliema Local Council started objecting to unsustainable developments. This was successful in the victories against development at Il-Pjazetta, Chalet and Qui-Si-Sana, to the benefit of residents.

I was also instrumental in the introduction of alternative energy and renewable energy measures in the local council, bicycle racks, a cat's café, free Wi-Fi and other initiatives. It was a pleasure working with my colleague councillors, something I intend to do if elected in March.

In short, I will do my utmost to ensure that Sliema Local Council acts in the interests of residents and not in the interests of big developers and careless contractors.