06th September 2002

Government should decide about future of land

Irrespective of what the MEPA decides about the proposed golf course at Verdala, the government should decide what position it will take, Friends of the Earth (Malta) said today.

Even if MEPA gives the go-ahead for the development, the problem of land ownership stands in the way of the developers. The land does not belong to AX Holdings, but to the government.

The government should indicate once and for all whether it is prepared to give up public land for a private commercial enterprise against the wishes of the families that have been tilling the land for generations.

It is highly irresponsible of the government to leave the farmers on tenterhooks for more than three years. It is highly irresponsible for Parliamentary Secretary George Pullicino to keep on stating that the decision will be taken by the competent authority, meaning MEPA, when that authority cannot decide issues relating to the ownership of land.

The government should also state where it stands vis a vis the golf course proposal and the Church State agreement. Is the government prepared to break this agreement against the interests of the farming community and Maltese agriculture?