Moviment Graffitti has welcomed the decision taken by MEPA in which it revoked the permit that had been given for the building of 23 villas at Ramla l-Hamra. However, Moviment Graffitti questioned how MEPA did not verify beforehand if the land in question was entirely privately owned. It is in the national interest that public land is safeguarded, and this can only be done through the competence of local authorities that are equipped with all the necessary information, the NGO said.

Moviment Graffitti added that it is of the opinion that it was not ethically correct that the developer applied for a permit without giving the correct information. Moviment Graffitti asks if MEPA is considering taking legal actions on this case?

Moviment Grafffitti states also that “the campaign against this development could only have been a success due to the alliance between different organizations from the environmental, political and social spheres.” Moviment Graffitti regards this final decision as ‘a victory for the common good.’

Several organizations had voiced their concern on the fact that certain important information was not taken into consideration by MEPA when it had granted the permit. These include the EIA study and the impact the project would have had in regards to the historical remains present in the area. This was said in a context where the Superintendent on Maltese Heritage was not officially informed about the proposed development on that site.

Moviment Graffitti added that it urges MEPA to make the processing of development applications more transparent. Before an application is processed MEPA should also make the necessary research to verify that the information it contains is correct. This should reduce the time wasted in processing applications and help MEPA obtain the trust of the Maltese public.