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| Angelo Xuereb Is Chicken - Julian Manduca Angelo Xuereb golf course proposal does not have many legs to stand on and that is why his articles in the press would seem so often to miss the point. His proposal can be discussed till the cows come home, but it is impossible to contradict the following facts: it goes against the Structure Plan for the Maltese Islands; it goes against the agreement between the government of Malta and the Vatican; it goes against the will of 95% of the farmers that work the land (as well as that of many other organisations and individuals) and it will have deleterious effects on Malta�s water supply, the environment and transport in the area. Angelo Xuereb�s attacks on agriculture are an attempt to mislead the public Angelo Xuereb�s latest tactic is to accuse his detractors of supporting unsustainable farming practices. Nothing could be further from the truth. Environment groups do quite the opposite and most people in Malta would like to have vegetables and fruit grown more naturally. While we do not support the methods of the farmers we do support them and that is an important distinction. It has been pointed out time and again that a more natural, or organic, farming method represents what could be Malta�s only alternative for agriculture given the threats of globalisation and Malta�s intention to join the EU. Angelo Xuereb�s attacks on agriculture are an attempt to mislead the public. He is suggesting that agricultural land should be given up to make way for golf courses and the like because the farming practices are not healthy or sustainable. What he fails to mention, however, is exactly how important agriculture is for our environment. Farming is extremely important for Malta because.... Farming is extremely important for Malta because agriculture: prevents soil erosion; protects our landscape; keeps our countryside clean (there is much more dumping on land which is not cultivated); protects against flooding; provides employment for thousands; allows us self sufficiency in certain foodstuffs and will be the largest receptor of organic waste once it is turned into good quality compost. The government should be doing its best to protect and improve agriculture, not hand it over for golf tourism that could be accommodated elsewhere. Angelo Xuereb is being manipulative by withholding certain facts from the general public. In his articles he continually refers to the draft Structure Plan that has no value at all. Whatever was written in the draft has been superseded by the final version. But that is not his worst sin. Angelo Xuereb is trying every dirty trick in the book Angelo Xuereb is trying every dirty trick in the book to convince the authorities that there should be a golf course in the land near Rabat when he himself opposed that idea. Writing to the Planning Authority in 1991 as part of the public consultation process for the Structure Plan Angelo Xuereb wrote: �Golf course near Hotel Verdala is not possible because 1. Most of the land is privately owned 2. The land is arable and should be conserved 3. The buildings will spoil the environment.� (quoted verbatim from �Summary of Public Consultation, Structure Plan for the Maltese Islands January 1991�). Angelo Xuereb is, beyond everything else, chicken Angelo Xuereb is, beyond everything else, chicken. He is chicken because he refuses to make public the reports he often quotes in order to back his golf course proposal. He quotes, but does not publish the entire reports, convincing us that he has something to hide. I have often publicly requested publication, and did so recently during a radio debate, but the reports remain unpublished. The reports in question are: the golf course EIA; the Planning Authority's 'Subject Plan on Golf,' the 'Policy Paper for golf courses in Malta,' prepared by a steering committee on golf, the report by Golf Services International (1973) and another by Quantum Associates (1989). In the EIA reference is also made to at least one report on economic feasibility, by Deloitte and Touche. Should these not be made available to the public then my feeling is that the public has every right to ignore Angelo Xuereb�s arguments since he clearly has something to hide. |
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