Partit Demokratiku to file objections ‘in defence of Rabat’

Partit Demokratiku yesterday said it would be filing objections with the Planning Authority against two hotels planned for Saqqajja Hill and square in Rabat.

News of an application for the development of a boutique hotel on both the iconic Saqqajja Hill and arguably one of the most beautiful avenues in Rabat, St Augustine’s Avenue, “has brought to the fore the fact that Rabat seems to be the next target for speculators to ravage.”

This follows a similarly questionable application for a 110room, five-storey hotel on Saqqajja Hill, the party has said.

Partit Demokratiku says it will be objecting to both developments, and has long argued in defence of Rabat residents against development abuses.

Party deputy leader Timothy Alden said: “Partit Demokratiku welcomes the fact that individuals and citizens from across the whole political divide have raised their voices in protest against this latest development. For it to be stopped, Partit Demokratiku calls for solidarity and perseverance, and the setting aside of partisan divides in defence of our heritage and environment.

“The ITS case showcases that the Planning Authority is often blind to public sentiment and opinion, and favours interpreting the rules only according to loopholes.”

Rabat, PD said, was under threat from recent applications that were turning the village core into a slew of restaurants and entertainment venues with utter disregard to the physical and social milieu of the village.

Meanwhile, a proposed 1,200vehicle car park, belvedere and road widening project eating away into the picturesque Valley in Għeriexem threatens the physical beauty of Wied Ġnien Ħira just a stone’s throw away from the Domus Romana.

Partit Demokratiku reiterated its August 2017 call in Parliament, via a private member’s bill, to create a national master plan, which would be accompanied by all the relevant studies and expertise to develop Malta’s economy without sacrificing the quality of life of its citizens or the sustainability and long-term health of the economy itself.

“Partit Demokratiku will keep fighting against injustice in favour of the people of Malta, offering solutions to the problems that the other parties ignore. We have to fix the broken system.”