It is understandable that yet another tragedy caused by fireworks should elicit so many public emotional outbursts. Yet, the silence from the politicians is deafening. Neither, as far as I am aware, has there been any public announcement from the Pyrotechnic Associations.
Now we not only have the virtual sound effects of an ongoing “war” and real deaths in the field, but we have the harsher reality of innocent casualties.
It is not that this is the first time that people have been killed and maimed by pyrotechnic explosions, but usually it is the people working in the factories who are the victims.
The public also mourned, voiced alarm and called for stricter regulations when that happened. But this time an innocent bystander has been killed, provoking even more anger at such preventable and unnecessary loss of life.
We are stunned that a young mother should lose her life as the victim of an explosion and four other women sustained injuries (thankfully, none of the four were grievously hurt, although one is still in hospital), more so when the explosion was caused by illegally stored fireworks.
Truckloads of fireworks material from two garages in the Naxxar residential core were removed on Wednesday following the explosion in another garage full of explosives just metres away.
And bless them, the police, especially the ones in Naxxar, had no idea that all this highly dangerous and illegal activity was going on. I shudder to think what else the police are blissfully unaware of. Yet, this is the country where we have roadblocks to haul in much smaller (miniscule, in comparison to the danger to society) amounts of marijuana under the guise of arms control.
Since some people tend to distort my comments and let their fantasies run riot at my expense, let me make it crystal clear that I am not in any way saying the authorities should not hunt down drug traffickers and be vigilant on arms control. I am saying that we need to get things in perspective. Roadblocks are not usually operational in countries not ravaged by civil war or other serious conflict. The relevant authorities should be utilising army and police resources effectively, and should deal with any bad apples in the police force that do not take action on reports.
It is rather thought-provoking that the truckloads of petards and explosive material were removed to safety after the tragedy by the army, which is itself responsible for the distribution of said explosives. A case of the right hand correcting gross inefficiencies of the left hand of the same entity.
The Prime Minister has now taken charge of that (AFM) portfolio, among others apparently too hot to be handled by any one else in the PN parliamentary group.
The tragedy claimed the lives of two people, injured four others, traumatised a community, demolished three houses, caused the evacuation of residents because of structural damage, and other residents have suffered lesser (though costly) damage to their homes.
I do feel sorry for Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici, the new Minister for Justice and Home Affairs, finding himself thrown in to deal with the problems not tackled by his predecessor: Tonio Borg who is still the deputy Prime Minister.
Mifsud Bonnici told The Times’ Mark Micallef that he intended to deal with the problem thoroughly after consulting the Police Commissioner, and that he would “implement significant changes” to this “completely unacceptable” situation.
But this completely unacceptable situation has arisen through the long term inaction of Tonio Borg, the Deputy Prime Minister and new Minister for Foreign Affairs, who was seen embarrassing himself clumsily elbowing his way in front of the TV cameras when Joe Saliba made the election result announcement. He has a lot to answer for. He has for years repeatedly ignored expert recommendations and public concern to bring the firework sector to heel and experts have admitted that to date the sector remains “largely unmonitored”. That has been brought home tragically yet again on Wednesday.
A number of months ago, just before the political parties were starting to gear up for the elections I was invited to go on a TV programme about fireworks. I was told that the other guests were to be Tonio Borg and the deputy leader of the MLP, Michael Falzon. I was looking forward to confronting those two politicians on the issue.
A few days before the programme was to be recorded, I was told that Tonio Borg had cancelled. The programme never materialised. The Deputy PM has repeatedly shied away from his responsibilities on this very serious issue. In any other democratic country, he would have resigned after this tragedy.
People are stunned at the fact that explosives can be stored in garages underlying residences. They wonder how come this was allowed to happen.
But this is not the first time we have had such an accident. Only the last time the family in the flat above the garage got away with their lives although their flat had been badly damaged and it took them years in the courts to get little if any compensation, because the person hoarding the explosives was declared bankrupt.
A blogger on the current issue opined, “It seems that anyone in Malta can open any business in a garage in a residential area and regardless of noise or inconvenience to the neighbours, without recourse to the authorities.”
Of course garages are meant to get MEPA permission for change of use, if they are not used to garage a car but for other uses such as storage. But this is one of the rampant abuses sometimes actually sanctioned by the very authority that is meant to uphold the law.
Again clarification is need here. I am in no way saying that MEPA sanctioned the hoarding of explosives in garages. But from personal experience I know that MEPA is more likely to believe a businessman’s side of a story than that of a complaining resident and has sanctioned change of use in cases when it shouldn’t have. Besides, there is no monitoring on what actually goes on in those garages.
But no worries, because MEPA is yet another portfolio Superman aka the PM is taking on.
Now, although I loathe the petards and have campaigned for ending the annual summer blitz, have written reams on the lack of pyrotechnic civic responsibility on safety and am deeply moved by every single tragedy cause by fireworks, I am also upset by knee-jerk reactions.
We do need to make the distinction between manslaughter and murder. I do understand the anger felt by many. But as totally irresponsible, illegal, uncivil and having no respect for other human beings, storing explosives in a residential area is, a death caused by such an explosion is manslaughter not murder, because the person responsible for the explosives did not set out to kill anyone.
Of course there should be suitable penalties for people found guilty of manslaughter. But let us not become a senseless lynch mob.

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