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Julian Manduca
The last attempt to replace the malfunctioning hospital waste incinerator at St Luke’s proved to be an abject failure after top officials of the supplying company found themselves in US jails.
While claims were made about the mishandling of the last process, the government is now showing itself unwilling to follow a transparent process.
Nearly a year after the failure of the last tender winner to deliver its equipment, a process is once again underway and 26 companies have shown an interest in providing Malta’s still to be completed hospital with a working technology.
The rumblings about a slowdown at Mater Dei – probably because of financial difficulties - should not, however, spell trouble for the long suffering residents of Msida, Pieta, Ta’Xbiex, Gwardamangia who have had to suffer the fumes from badly burning hospital waste including body parts for a number of years.
When MaltaToday contacted the ministry of health a ministry spokesperson confirmed that once the new technology is available it will be installed at the new hospital and waste will be transferred from St Luke’s, and other hospitals, to Mater Dei.
The new procedure will present new difficulties and discomfort for hospital workers who will have to transfer the waste, but at least the residents living in the vicinity of the incinerator will breathe a sigh of relief – even if residents of Pieta have been complaining that waste from other hospitals, including incontinence nappies of the elderly, passes through their locality in uncovered trucks.
New process
Following the expression of interest made last month by bidders that include former defaulters Sarrebico, a committee has been set up to review the various offers. When MaltaToday asked for the names of those appointed on the committee, ministry of health Director General Dr Ray Busuttil replied: “For obvious reasons I do not think it is appropriate to state who is on the committee.”
When MaltaToday asked for the “obvious reasons,” and pointed out that it was under the impression that such a process would be transparent and that it was in the public’s interest to know who would be adjudicating a public process, Busuttil replied: “Once the evaluation process is over, I will have no objection to stating who is on the committee. At this stage I prefer not to list the said members.” When MaltaToday persisted, Busuttil’s response was “I have no further comment to make.”
When MaltaToday contacted Sarrebico to ask for the reasons of its non-compliance during the previous bid, and about its new bid, the company failed to reply.
MaltaToday still receives phone calls and messages from residents and boat owners who keep their luxury, and not so luxury, boats in the vicinity of the St Luke’s incinerator which continues to belch black smoke in contravention of the law.
The Malta government has been in breach of its law every day for the past years as the Clean Air Act 1968 clearly states: “Dark smoke shall not be emitted from a chimney of any building, and if, on any day, dark smoke is so emitted, the occupier of the building shall be guilty of an offence.”
When MaltaToday asked whether reports appearing in the media suggesting that the opening of Mater Dei was to be postponed were true, the ministry spokesperson said he could not provide an answer to that question.
julian@newsworksltd.com
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