Planning Authority chairperson refuses interview with The Malta Independent

The Planning Authority has refused to grant this newsroom an interview with its chairperson Martin Saliba.

This newsroom had first gotten in touch with the PA for an interview with Saliba last May, with the PA suggesting a date for some time within summer, owing to the fact that Saliba had already agreed to an interview with the Times of Malta at that time.

At the end of May – after the interview had aired – this newsroom again got in touch with the PA’s spokesperson, who expressed concern at how Saliba had been portrayed in his interview with the Times of Malta and said that Saliba would accept interviews as long as the text was approved by his office prior to publication.

The spokesperson said that a date could be set for late June if that condition was agreed to.

The condition was agreed to – even if it is not standard procedure for how this newsroom conducts interviews – but no reply on an interview date was forthcoming.

Another request for an interview sent in in the middle of July subsequently remained without a reply.

Yet another request for the interview to be conducted was sent at the end of August, only for the PA’s spokesperson to reply that Saliba “will not be taking interviews for the time being.”

Emails sent since then asking what the reason for this decision was and for an indication on when Saliba will be available for an interview have all not been answered.

The last interview which Saliba granted to independent media houses was that interview with the Times of Malta last May, where the headline was that the country needs to accept that Malta is moving into a modern era.