May 2013 interview with Chris Cardona: Labour pledged new location to market hawkers BEFORE the general election
Economy Minister Chris Cardona said in May 2013 that the Labour Party had promised the Parliament House location to market traders before the general election.
This Times of Malta interview with Economy Minister Chris Cardona, just a few weeks after the new government got in, proves that the Labour Party pledged the new Parliament House location to market traders in return for their vote, before the general election.
Cardona says so categorically.
He also says that public money – taxes – and EU funds would be used to make the new stalls. We know about the public money and that the stalls were made for the hawkers free of charge to them in government workshops.
But can we have some more information on whether EU funds were indeed used for this disgraceful purpose.
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http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130528/local/government-to-help-hawkers-replace-their-stalls.471512
Of course not, EU funds by default come with some competition.
Someone’s screwed up, and it’s not just this Lewis architect.
It’s also plausible to say the decision to extend the flea market onto St. James was pretty much concealed from public opinion.
Joe Mizzi had Kenneth on a leash when the so-called details implied it would be on the Ferreria side.
There must have been some haggling on the number of stalls.
Ruining the new face of Valletta for roughly how many votes? Is it really worth it? What complete ignorance.
Unfortunately when one makes a deal before the election with niche groups, at the expense of the overall picture, it is not ignorance but dirty politics.
Every project or measure of consequence conceived by Labour has somehow been dogged by controversy, maladministration and/or ineptitude.
On the other hand those in the pipeline under the previous administration and left to proceed (such as the interconnector) are more or less coming on stream as planned.
Aiming to please multiple masters never works out but, as we have seen, it does get you elected.
When you then start to deliver, your deception is exposed.
Fitting photovolaic panels on top of these stalls would make Valletta the hub of energy in Europe.
Please note Mr Willy.
Maybe the Economy Minister can throw in a stainless pole in each of those gabbani and turn the whole lot of ’em into a red-light district for lap dance.
I’m sure the public would be flocking to Valletta to follow the evening Parliamentary debates.
EU funds?
We are already a month into 2015 and the operational programs of the 2014 – 2020, upon which the European funds can be utilised, have still not been approved yet.
That means that these will most probably be approved mid-2015 with the first calls being opened late 2015 or early 2016.
Knowing how ling it takes from calls to start of projects, we shall be lucky if the first projects are up an running by early 2017 – basically losing 3 years of potential funding
And all this with a Minister for EU affairs and a Parl. Sec. for EU funds. Really energetic and fenominali.
Very apt picture – symbolising the bunch of c*nts making the cabinet.
Wasn’t it obvious from the very start?
The hawkers want a prime site to ply their trade, or so they think. Come V18 and thereafter, immagina dawk it-turisti kollha dehlin il-belt.
The closer they are to the main entrance (and a nice one at that) the better are their chances to rip off buyers. ‘Wise move’, they’d say.