Statistics are not really going to accurately describe the reality of the cost of living in Malta.
For a more realistic picture, we have to trust our senses and our instincts. They tell us that the grocery bill we just paid was significantly more expensive than the one from a year ago, a month ago, or even yesterday.
As we pocket our change at the cash register, we pause for a moment, take a look at the items purchased, the total amount displayed on the cash register and the change in our hands, or the coupon for the card transaction of debt.
Once at home, we unpack our belongings and can hardly accept that there are so few of them. The bread we bought is almost 4 euros. The 4 squashes are more than 5 euros. Other daily needs, nothing extravagant make up the rest. They said the price of the eggs had not gone up but the store manager said he was paying the supplier 10c extra for them.
But that’s just the shopping. ARMS invoices have a life of their own. They are gymnasts full of contortions. Trying to make it the head or the tail, contacting ARMS billing department leads to almost nothing. Always the same email. If you actually want to speak to a billing agent to try and resolve the issue once and for all, that’s not possible. They are told to call you back but that never happens. The same goes for social services.
What is this inaccessibility with government departments or services? Shouldn’t we have the right to speak to a senior clerk or official if an issue drags on and we’re not happy with the response so far? It wastes everyone’s time going around in circles. But all customer service is now a Fort Knox around its staff.
If you have rent to pay, for your apartment or your house, you will soon have to reconsider your location in order to reduce the cost of renting.
The number of families using the Valletta Victory kitchen is 23,964 and the meals served total 127,834 since its inception. Their mission is: “A food charity operating through a network of local restaurants, social workers and logistics companies. Joining forces to create a sustainable, long-term plan to deliver food to families hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Victory Kitchen translates humble food into hope, faith and courage for those who might otherwise remain hungry.
The Valletta soup kitchen run by the Franciscan order fed 8,600 people in 4 months. Over 30,000 meals have been served by the Soup Kitchen OFM. Data shows that two out of three customers are male, with the majority being adults and Maltese (91%). People come to the kitchen from all over the island.
It may be time to investigate where the need is most and since users come from different cities, choosing kitchen logistics sub-sites will relieve the demand in Valletta.
Who also knows how many mothers and fathers make sacrifices to feed their children or keep them warm?
If Robert Abela is able to say, without any shame, that no violation of the rule of law took place under him, then I expect him to also say that no child has hunger. Facts say otherwise, as does instinct.
The state of denial is endemic. Criminals are protected. The lies are propagated and the reports are fictitious. In the meantime, making ends meet becomes a real struggle. The forced crackdown on VAT and income tax arrears is adding pressure to an already difficult financial situation. This while direct orders are thrown around like free lunches and those who stole millions from our tax dollars are exempt from accounting.
The increase in the cost of living of €1.75 per week is, of course, like the drop of rainwater that is lost in the sea. In the past, with all the reliance on imported workers, there was some reasoning to keep the minimum wage below the cost of living, but it is now clear that it in itself prevents foreigners from returning work in Malta. The gap between affordability and income has widened to such an extent that our country is once again falling in the indexes and losing its name of good quality of life.
Health and medical expenses, heating, entertainment, education and sports are all driven up by rising costs for providers. Fuel costs affect food production and transportation. At a time when we can make do with non-imported products and food, our agricultural industry is gradually becoming marginalized.
A global society gives way to a national society and a secularized society to a more social one.
People are sensing and experiencing more and more how disconnected this organization led by Robert Abela is. In these times of need, reading about the Medical Services Foundation CEO and Karl Stagno Navarra’s €163,000 salaries with Air Malta, on top of the billions that corruption is costing us, is simply archaic. Why does the country always have to fall back into the abyss with Labour? When have they ever led Malta to a better place? They give the impression of being ahead of the curve when it comes to public policy, with all their fake civil rights and while dragging us into the swamp from which it is indeed difficult to emerge.
Anyone who is complicit in seeing this state of affairs continue to the point of nausea and our economy become a cog in the wheel of corruption and abuse, should wake up and spare a thought for those who do not ask for much but who deserve dignity and a decent life.
This pinch is still felt, with our social life having taken a hit with Covid and additional costs like private lessons for children or the gym having been reduced in recent years. The pressure that existed before Covid was masked by a false positive from a few and the type of social media that left no room for truth.
Ian Borg may insist on his marina, the construction may deceive with high-rise buildings and luxury apartments and the roads may be blocked by traffic, but that does not mean that we live well and achieve our life goals. , however small.
Important decisions must be made and a responsible and mature, intelligent and honest administration must be put in place to deal with the rising cost of living before it is too late.
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