NGOs call out Gozo minister's lack of transparency over Marsalforn road-widening project

NGOs, Din l-Art Ħelwa (DLĦ), Rota, and the Gozo Cycling Club, have blasted government's lack of transparency on the details of the project, as they stated Gozo minister Clint Camilleri is withholding the project plans.

The project had drawn criticism from a number of other NGOs in the past, as they warned the road widening will lead to the uprooting of over 230 trees and destroy agricultural land and natural habitats.

In a statement on Wednesday, DLĦ said that on April 11, its representatives met with Clint Camilleri to discuss the controversial road widening project. This meeting followed an appeal from DLĦ urging the Camilleri to reconsider the project, which would result in uprooting over 200 trees in the serene valley between Victoria and Marsalforn, potentially devastating the delicate ecosystem.

They noted that Camilleri, in an interview, stated that the primary purpose of the project was to introduce a cycling lane. However, cycling NGOs Rota and the Gozo Cycling Club were not consulted before the plans were drawn up.

Rota has since condemned the project as an "atrocity," warning that the road straightening would encourage higher speeds for motorised vehicles, rather than serve the needs of active mobility solutions.

During the April meeting, Camilleri promised to provide both existing and proposed drawings of the project for review by DLĦ, Rota, and the Gozo Cycling Club. However, despite repeated reminders, the NGOs have not received these drawings more than three months later.

DLĦ, Rota, and the Gozo Cycling Club have criticised this lack of transparency, arguing that the failure to share the plans hinders their ability to adequately assess the project's impact. 

They assert that while the introduction of cycling lanes is generally welcomed, it should not justify a road-widening project that threatens a quiet valley and involves the indiscriminate uprooting of trees.