Marsaskala marina discussed by mayor’s 'secret' committee in 2020

Marsaskala’s mayor Mario Calleja and newly-elected Labour MP Ray Abela were aware of Transport Malta’s plans for a yacht marina as far back as August 2020, a full year before the agency issued a tender for the controversial plans.

Minutes from a 28 August 2020 meeting for the mayor’s subcommittee, dubbed the Marsaskala Regeneration Committee, show that its members discussed the marina as a “matter of priority” and proposed meetings with the transport regulator to “address any issues” that may arise.

But it was the PN’s minority leader John Baptist Camilleri who, after protesting at the lack of councillors’ representation on the committee, discovered that the committee was already discussing various plans, including those to pedestrianise St Anne’s Square and to divert traffic to the church and school.

PN councillor John Baptist Camilleri addresses demonstrators at a protest against the Marsaskala marina

These plans were never discussed with the local council itself, and no mention of the marina was made until December 2020, when Camilleri informed the council that the subcommittee was also discussing a yacht marina proposal for the Marsaskala bay.

No further mention of the marina was made until August 2021, when Transport Malta issued the secretive PQQ (preliminary questionnaire) right before the Santa Marija festivities, without informing residents or local council of their plans, leading to protests from the community in which councillors from both PL and PN were seen participating.

During the Local Council meeting of the 20 December 2020, Calleja came under fire from other councillors for the lack of transparency in setting up the committee. Deputy Mayor Janice Falzon, in a reference to Ray Abela, asked why the chairman of the Regeneration Committee was parading himself on social media, meeting government departments and entities without the Council’s knowledge or approval.

Other councillors stated their dismay at the fact that the subcommittee was meeting entities like Transport Malta and Infrastructure Malta on various projects which the council knew nothing about, amongst which was the marina.

In that meeting, Calleja had stated that the subcommittee had been holding meetings out of “enthusiasm”. 

“Brainless proposal”

Calleja, however, had dubbed the proposal as “brainless” in an interview which appeared on the Malta Independent on Sunday 20 February 2022, two days before PM Robert Abela announced the withdrawal of the project in an electoral rally in Marsaskala.

The mayor said he only found out about Transport Malta’s plans for the marina once news of the PQQ emerged in the media, despite him knowing about an impending marina since at least August 2020.

Labour MP Ray Abela

On his part, Ray Abela was the only candidate to speak in favour of a marina in the locality, only to declare that the marina was a “closed case” after the PM’s announcement.

It remains unclear as to why Calleja and Abela hid the marina proposal from the public for almost a year.

Contentious subcommittee

The subcommittee was originally set up Labour mayor Mario Calleja, to serve as a coordinating committee with roads agency Infrastructure Malta, Transport Malta and the Water Services Corporation to develop a plan to improve Marsaskala.

The committee was chaired by the Labour candidate Ray Abela, and included his cousin Eric Abela – who has plans to open a boutique hotel in the town – Joseph Farrell, and Angele Abela, who resigned shortly after.

After learning of the subcommittee’s plans, Camilleri alleged that Eric Abela was behind a pedestrianisation proposal to divert traffic away from his property.

Indeed, the committee’s minutes show both Ray and Eric Abela being in talks with Infrastructure Malta CEO Fredrick Azzopardi to finalise the plans.

But after criticism from councillors and residents, Mario Calleja dissolved the sub-committee.

Soon after, the Malta Tourism Authority announced a “design contest” which residents say was intended at giving the seal of approval to the subcommittee’s plans.

The MTA design contest called for architects, engineers and planners to take part in an ‘urban design contest’ to improve the locality to attract more tourists.

Last year, Eric Abela had reported members of the Save Marsaskala group to the police, accusing them of irregularly collecting funds and hanging a banner without a permit. However, the developer did not turn up in court to sustain his accusations, leading the magistrate to immediately dismiss the case.