Market Minister Chris Cardona doesn’t know that Ordnance Street runs all the way up to St James Cavalier
The Minister in charge doesn’t even know where Ordnance Street ends
There are times when I laugh rather than despair at the situation we are in, because it’s better that way. Today is one such day. As you all know, there’s a huge debate going on about the Valletta market and the government’s decision to run it all the way up Ordnance Street, including that part of Ordnance Street between the theatre and Parliament House, and then we discover, thanks to a story on The Sunday Times front page, that the cabinet minister taking these decisions does not even know where Ordnance Street ends.
He’s not the only one. Most of those who have joined in the discussion are under the impression that Ordnance Street ends in Republic Street, and that the bit between the theatre and Parliament House is some other street by another name.
But all those other people can be forgiven for that. Minister Chris Cardona has no excuse. IT IS ABSOLUTELY BEYOND BELIEF THAT HE HAS DONE THE MARKET PLANNING WITHOUT KNOWING THAT THE BIT BETWEEN PARLIAMENT HOUSE AND THE THEATRE IS ORDNANCE STREET TOO. What a shambles. I’m beginning to wonder whether anybody is actually in charge.
After reading The Sunday Times story, even I had a moment of doubt there, despite being a half-Beltija and more than certain that Ordnance Street pretty much runs from one cavalier to the other. So I texted a Belti for reassurance, and got it. Then I read The Sunday Times story again to make sure that I hadn’t misinterpreted it, but sure enough, it is clear that Chris Cardona thinks Ordnance Street ends in Republic Street. And for that matter, so does the newspaper.
See what you think – I quote the relevant bit here.
The government has hinted that it is bowing to pressure to squeeze all 75 monti stalls into Ordnance Street and curb the controversial spillover across the street besides Valletta’s new parliament building and old theatre ruins.
“If it is physically possible to place all the stalls in Ordnance Street, I will do so to avoid any stalls spreading out. I’m already working on this but it involves negotiating with every single market hawker,” Small Businesses Minister Chris Cardona told The Sunday Times of Malta.
On second thoughts, it might be possible that the minister and the newspaper are speaking at cross purposes: that Cardona knows exactly where Ordnance Street ends and that he is speaking of confining all the stalls to the entire length of the street, including the bit between Parliament House and the theatre, without having a spillover into Republic Street and the gate, while the newspaper thinks that what he means is that he is working on confining them to the bit of the street near the Ordnance Pub, ending in Republic Street.
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They had a road map of Malta but not of Ordnance Street.
How many road maps do they have?
He does have a signature blank look in the photo. The mind boggles.
That blank look is a direct result of the lack of oxygen flowing up to the head, due to the tight collar.
It’s a shame how they are spoiling Valletta with these stupid hawkers in Ordnance street. They should stay where they are now as it’s a good place for them.
Nowadays there is a market in every village on different days. People don’t need to go to the Valletta market anymore.
They should say “good riddance” to them. Who needs that crap! If Valletta was Paris or London, fine, you can hide them away in some derelict spot, but this is not possible in a minuscule city.
Kohlrabi iehor bla dubju ta’ xejn! Ciss hej…., kemm ahna sbieh min jaf jarana.
I think your second thoughts are spot on. It is the Times of Malta people who are misinterpreting what the government is actually saying.
The man fails to tell the truth.
Joe Zrinzo, representative of the market traders, knew that.
Is Chris Cardona now trying to tell us that he was not informed by Zrinzo when it appears that they were interviewed together?
‘Dr Cardona was not asked whether stalls would be set up between the ‘open theatre’ and the new Parliament House’
‘Joe Zrinzo said the market would be set up from near the former Rio Rita Bar (near Our Lady of Victory Church at the top of Ordnance Street)’
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130528/local/government-to-help-hawkers-replace-their-stalls.471512
It’s so strange. The covered market is empty and these hawkers prefer to stay outdoors on the street?
Google maps has one part of the street named Ordnance Street and the part next to St James as Triq L-Ordinanza.
[Daphne – Yes, because in Maltese it’s given, stupidly, as Triq L-Ordinanza, which means ‘ordinance’, something completely different to ‘ordnance’. I see you went in to check me. tsk tsk]
In order to avoid confusion that part of Ordnance Street should be renamed. Possible names:
Triq Is-Suq
Triq il-Helsien – as a reminder of Misrah il-Helsien
Triq il-Parlament
Triq Renzo Piano
Any other suggestions?
Triq l-Artiljerija
Ordnance is rather hard to translate, because it refers to artillery as well as ammunition and associated equipment.
Needless to say, any word we choose will have to be a neologism, extrapolated from what we imagine is the closest Italian word.
Triq is-Sussistenza might do. But then we’d re-translate it as “Subsistence Street”. Heqq, mhux hdej’ is-Social Policy?
If I am not mistaken, it was called St Rita Street and it was the shortest street in Valletta.
Triq in-Nejk l’Ghandna.
Triq Ir-Roadmap isbah.
Triq il-Misthija Nazzjonali.
No lap dance clubs on the upper part of Ordnance Street, then?
U x’ma kienux jafu.
We cannot even start to comprehend what discussions with the Monti hawkers are like. My bet is that they even had a plan or in Labour speak, a roadmap, indicating where each and every stall will be located. That is the way that their votes must have been secured.
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2013-05-21/news/80-million-piano-design-may-soon-be-bookending-monti-1643708416/
Their GPS data maps are all wrong, it seems. Each road map has several wrong turning directions, consists of u-turns and wrong street descriptions.
Even Outside Development Zone confines and urban core data seem to have errors.
It’s in the road map. It’s not their fault.
Will this part of the unravelling need another fall guy?
Surely the Valletta Rehabilitation Committee knows where one street starts and ends, even if they’ve conveniently been divided into two languages, and even if they say they were left out of the planning.
Most of the shops in the city gate mall have closed down. That would make the perfect place for the market traders and they wouldn’t have to worry about the rain or wind.
And why are we forgetting the General Workers Union. The stalls blend with the Renzo Piano project, they had told us.
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2013-05-28/news/gwu-welcome-monti-relocation-to-ordinance-street-1700364288/
Tghid Leli Mallia ser jaqtahha z-zigarella?
One has to be completely stupid to state that the stalls will blend with the magnificent building Renzo Piano designed. The harsh truth is that Zarb & Co are a bunch of person who lack any culture whatsoever. Hallina Tony trid.
Re the last paragraph, I think you are right. I was in the street between the new parliament and the theatre a couple of days a go and noticed numbers on the floor. I assume these are the pitch numbers for the stalls.
If that’s the case, Cardona has known all along exactly what will be going where.
I think Cardona got it right and The Sunday Times (and its glorious reporters) got it wrong.
The original suggestion, just after the election, was precisely that: that the Monti would occupy the length of Ordnance Street.
There was no talk of Republic Street then.
I suspect that that happened when they realised they couldn’t fit in all the stalls (especially as the new ones look like being twice the size of the current ones).
When I commented just what a stupid move that would be, people either rolled their eyes and thought that once again I was being negative, or worse yet, couldn’t see what the fuss was about.
Sad to think that it should be a badly designed stand that get’s tongues wagging.
I think the carpark at the end of South Steet could be a good idea. In Valletta but out of sight.
Mepa, the board of aesthetics, Wirt Artna, Heritage Malta, Fondazzjoni Ghal Ambjent Ahjar, VLT18, Valletta local council and all other Valletta organisations should protest and insist on finding another site for the market.
If the intention is to mislead, which it most definitely is, they’re utter wankers.