€45,000 and ‘temporary’

Last month a temporary ramp was built near the fast ferry terminal in Gozo to enable easier access for the Pope from the ferry to the terminal. This week we heard that the €45,000 concrete ramp built especially for Pope Francis's visit to the Mġarr harbour is now being demolished. This comes as unwelcome news to many Gozo residents who hoped it could be used permanently for a fast ferry service carrying cars from Valletta. Infrastructure Malta informed the press that it was never intended to be anything more than temporary and that the materials used were intended to be just a short term fix that would deteriorate very quickly if put to long term use.

The point is, the ramp was only used once, for a mere three minutes and a half, when the pontiff arrived in Gozo, and his accompanying motorcade descended from the catamaran before making its way to Ta' Pinu. It is understood the contractor who built the ramp was Road Structures Limited, the same contractor carrying out upgrades and maintenance works on the concrete structure of the Mġarr harbour quays. While it is understandable that the Pope's visit warrants a special service to Gozo, was there really no other practical way of transporting him to the island? While some may deem the sum may be peanuts in the grand scale of government spending, was €45,000 spent well in this case? We will leave that for you to decide.

We must also acknowledge the pontiff's visit was a long time coming, in fact, delayed as the pandemic prevented an earlier visit. Could this temporary ramp have endured better long term planning to benefit the locals? €45,000 is undoubtedly a lot of money for something temporary, and something used for a mere few minutes.

One cannot help but wonder how this sum of money could have been better utilised; €45,000 would make a massive difference to many entities across the islands, from animal shelters that are full to capacity, street cats that need neutering, to various rehabilitation programmes for substance abusers and more. It's a pity this ramp couldn't have been turned into a longer-term project to benefit both tourists and locals alike.