Kevin Cassar’s recent piece in The Shift, “GRAND PROMISES, MURKY WATERS: THE €700 MILLION ROAD TO NOWHERE,” is yet another typical hit job drenched in pessimism and short-sighted scorn. He mocks the €700 million, seven-year residential road upgrade programme as a failure. But here is the reality he refuses to acknowledge:
Labour Delivered What the Nationalists Ignored for 25 Years
For a quarter of a century under Nationalist governments, Malta’s residential roads were left to rot. From crumbling asphalt to dangerous potholes, these streets became daily hazards for families, workers, and elderly citizens. The PN’s approach? Patch jobs, excuses, and neglect.
Then came Labour. In 2017, it launched the largest road infrastructure revolution in Maltese history, investing €700 million over seven years to rebuild entire residential networks. This wasn’t just cosmetic resurfacing – it included:
• Complete reconstruction of street foundations
• New pavements and walkways for safer pedestrian access
• Coordination with utility entities to upgrade underground water, electricity, and telecom networks
Kevin Cassar’s Cheap Rants vs. Labour’s Tangible Results
Cassar’s opinion piece is littered with melodrama: open trenches, blocked pavements, muddy roads, brown runoff in Xlendi Bay, and sewage leaks in Sliema. But his article deliberately ignores three basic facts:
1. These projects take time. Coordinating road upgrades with underground utility replacements is complex and unavoidably disruptive in the short term.
2. The results are transformative. Hundreds of residential streets that were neglected for decades have been rebuilt to modern standards. Communities have regained pride in their neighbourhoods, safety for their children, and accessibility for their elderly.
3. The alternative was doing nothing – as the PN did for 25 years. Cassar’s beloved Nationalists presided over decades of infrastructural decay with no vision or plan for renewal.
Cassar’s beloved Nationalists presided over decades of infrastructural decay with no vision or plan for renewal.
Labour’s Strategy: Invest, Deliver, Modernise
Labour understood that infrastructural investment is not just about roads. It’s about:
• Supporting economic growth and productivity
• Reducing vehicle damage and accidents
• Enhancing community well-being
• Future-proofing Malta’s urban infrastructure for decades to come
This €700 million project was a statement of governance courage – choosing long-term national upgrades over short-term popularity.
Kevin Cassar’s Strategy: Moan, Undermine, Obstruct
Cassar’s strategy remains as stale as the PN’s legacy:
• Complain loudly
• Offer no solutions
• Weaponise public frustration to score political points
Partit Nazzjonalista
But Maltese families know the truth. Under the PN, roads decayed. Under Labour, roads are being rebuilt. Kevin Cassar’s article may rant about puddles and trenches, but the reality is clear: this is an infrastructure revolution he and his party never had the vision or courage to deliver.
