Updated | Beer stalls on De Valette square back to rile the indignant

They're back: beer stalls, neatly placed wooden benches and servings of chips with lashings of vinegar will be darkening the hallowed space where the effigy of a Catholic corsair who had little sympathy for the Maltese watches over passers-by near Zachary Street.

The Nationalist Party is gearing up for the Independence celebrations by hosting its supporters at the Da Valette square, food and music included.

For the love of the Order! A double cheeseburger is being purveyed at the east flank of Jean de la Valette's hip.

Readers who enjoy the silliness of Maltese umbrage over pretty much anything will remember when back in February the justice and culture ministry had to reply to some online brouhaha generated by the media and direct the Arts Council to remove an offending food kiosk from the De Valette square in Valletta.

The Valletta local council claimed the siting of the ‘La Valette’ kiosk was allocated there by the Arts Council, and not by the council. Valletta mayor Alexiei Dingli had said on Facebook that the location for the kiosk in the De Valette square was “unacceptable”: the council had endorsed applications submitted to the Arts Council but the kiosk in question had relocated itself closer to the statute. Questions sent to the mayor remained unanswered.

The PN itself, through its daily paper, had ridiculed the "Grandmaster's kiosk" carrying a picture of the setup on the front page.
So what makes it acceptable now? According to the Nationalist Party, it's a question of "concept".

"We have created a concept of an outside home with properly organized installations, plants, sofas and an environment which appeals to all those who attend the organised events," a spokesperson for the PN said.

Much to the surprise of everyone, the PN broke away from tradition when it decided to move its celebrations from the Granaries in Floriana to the much smaller De Valette square.

"It was in response to an overwhelming desire to bring something new to this year’s celebrations," the spokesperson said.

"We looked no further than a stone’s throw away from the traditional Granaries in Floriana to the gem in the crown of a long series of achievements of Nationalist governments over the years – the Piano project, in a place restored to the glory it deserves, our capital city Valletta.

The outstanding differences from previous years reflect the continuous changes, the dynamics and achievements within the party."
Forget the carnival malarkey. The Nationalist Party's Independence celebrations are of a more acceptable quality of public encroachment, it would seem.