Speak to anyone about the Maltese Islands and the chances are that the first thing they will tell you, even if they have never visited the islands is: “Oh yes, Valletta? Are you from there?”; some web pages even list Valletta as the location of the airport and others will recall their visit to the island and how entranced they were at the site of this fortified town! But over the past few years we have tended to drift away from this walled city...mainly turning our attention to modern shopping areas in the towns and villages around the small island state. In the past three or four years we have seen a gradual improvement in this situation thanks to initiatives taken by Government such as Notte Bianca and also investment such as the Valletta Waterfront, the regeneration of Piazza San Giorgio (commonly known by many as the Main Guard) and the forthcoming revamp for the city gate area in the coming months.
We may yet have the opportunity of witnessing a rebirth for the “City Built by Gentlemen for Gentlemen” and this will surely be the best way of giving back the social heart to the town. But enough with the rhetoric, now and let me get on with what we need to do make this happen!
First of all we need to accept that our Capital City cannot be taken for granted any longer, which means we treat it as the place that has developed our identity throughout the centuries, as a sovereign state and a civilization rich in culture and indigenous characteristics.
Second, we need to respect this place and give our attention to the environmental management which should enhance its attractiveness and accessibility. This means that we should understand that this is not a town that can afford to receive excessive amounts of private vehicles nor is it the ideal place where one can allocate parking spaces. I do believe that the regeneration of Piazza San Giorgio has helped in this respect and, as the Prime Minister stated in his address on the 7th December, during the official inauguration of the square: “We are giving this square back to the people”, it has taken at least half a century, but now we need to appreciate this and consider it an important part of our own urban cultural landscape .
Third, once and for all, we need to agree that any plans for regeneration are already a step in the right direction. What has become of the city gate area over the past 40 years is pathetic, to say the least, what is planned for this area in the next year or so is an investment for us all – we will have a Parliament Building that can serve this nation as the stalwart for democracy for decades to come and we will have a space for a theatre that certainly is better than the wreck which was left by a previous Government in the late 1950’s when the structure was dismantled pending a future rebuilding!
I really have little time for petty little comments which serve to destroy all hope of constructive debate about how we can regenerate our capital city; I do have plenty of time, on the other hand, for constructive debate that builds on our achievements. We need to answer one simple and succinct question: Are we proud enough to accept responsibility for the management of this town? This means that we must accept that its present state can only be enhanced if we play our part in ensuring that the social, environmental and cultural aspects are kept consistently in order. My concern is that the terms consistency and responsibility are seen as the remit for Local and National Government in this country !
