The NGOs Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Friends of the Earth, Ramblers and Youth for Environment are
increasingly concerned that uncontrolled development is seriously impacting the quality of life,
economy and environment in Malta. The Malta Environment Protection Authority was set up to
regulate development, however through appointments of its top positions according to politics rather
than merit, MEPA has been reduced to nothing but a screen to mask politicians’ efforts to promote the
interests of their developer backers.
The present MEPA CEO, Johann Buttigieg, should never have been appointed to the post due to his track
record. In 2012 the MEPA Auditor had censored Johann Buttigieg severely and called for legal action to
be taken against him, stating that the information in Buttigieg’s report on the application for a wedding
hall below Rabat: “is false and misleading… the case officer’s report constituted flagrant abuse with the
intention of misleading the DCC and approving the permit”.
This government has been using the CEO of MEPA as its private consultant, rather the ultimate
arbiter of what can be permitted within planning regulations. So much so that when the highest
authorities met with the NGOs, the MEPA CEO sat with Government, arguing in favour using
Zonqor for the American University.
The Zonqor preliminary site selection presented by Johann Buttigieg was prepared in confidence at the
request of OPM, without any consultation with any of MEPA’s directorates and experts. Mr Buttigieg
also gave misleading and incorrect information to the Parliamentary Committee for Environmental
matters, which constitutes contempt of Parliament. All in all he has fatally undermined MEPA’s
already-poor integrity as an independent and impartial regulator.
These acts, as well as the SPED and several new policies which will allow further destruction of Malta’s
environment, ignore MEPA’s remit “to ensure that land use and the protection of the environment
meet the needs of today’s society and future communities”. This shows that Government is using
MEPA to facilitate pet projects, rather than to regulate development in the interests of the
nation, and that Johann Buttigieg is unsuited to lead MEPA or indeed to hold any senior post in any part
of the up-coming (post-MEPA) Environment- Planning set ups.
The fact that Johann Buttigieg was following the Prime Minister’s orders is no excuse but reflect badly
on those who appointed him. The Government has now put Mr Buttigieg in an untenable position,
leaving him no option but to resign. Should he refuse to resign, the onus of his unethical handling of
the Zonqor case falls directly on the Prime Minister.
Until client-politics are eliminated from MEPA and its future successor bodies, there can be no holistic
planning, no environmental justice, and no long-term economic benefit.
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The last-minute invitation to consult on the MEPA demerger is roundly condemned by Flimkien għal
Ambjent Aħjar as a cynical, lip-service pretence of public consultation. The 24-hour notice to study and
comment on some 250 legal clauses does not even meet the EU minimum requirements which Malta is
legally obliged to follow.
FAA has always maintained that any changes at MEPA could only be considered if they strengthen the
position of the Environment Directorate, which had been starved of staff, rendering it ineffectual and
subservient to the Planning Directorate.
Even without an in-depth study, it is clearly apparent that the proposed demerger does the opposite, cutting
the proposed Environment Authority out of the equation, and reducing it to just another entity to be
consulted at the whim of the Planning Authority, as set out in Clause 36 (e): “any other supplementary
member from the list of entities indicated in the Fourth Schedule who may be called in to attend meetings
of the Executive Council at the discretion of the Executive Chairperson.”
Furthermore, the proposed demerger maintains the political stranglehold on Malta’s planning and
environment: “The Executive Council may with the approval of the Minister appoint advisory boards and
committees to assist it in the performance of its functions under this or any other law. The functions of the
said boards and committees shall be prescribed by the Executive Council with the approval of the Minister.”
Control of Malta’s environment by politicians hiding behind the screen of MEPA has undermined Malta’s
landscapes, heritage and quality of life for the last decades. The Zonqor case was the most recent example
of this, leading to the eNGOs’ call for the resignation of the MEPA CEO due to political manipulation of his
role. While the appointment of officials remains in the hands of any minister, no real progress will be made.
The feeble attempt to involve eNGOs in the demerger draft is a hollow gesture which reflects on
government’s lack of respect for civil society. No amount of restructuring of MEPA will help until there is
real political commitment to allow the genuine experts to regulate without political interference, in the
interests of the Maltese public and future generations.
ENDS
365 Words 07.07.15
