A cheap media stunt by camera-prone Minister Miriam Dalli, intended to capitalise on a minuscule project inside a housing estate in Attard, backfired as many residents and people familiar with the area ridiculed her attempt, describing it as blatant propaganda aimed at impressing the gullible.
Last week, Dalli hit the national TV headlines, particularly on the state broadcaster PBS and Labour’s ONE, announcing that she had inaugurated a new garden and “green space” for some 7,000 Attard residents living next to the housing estate.
However, her attempt to give the wrong impression soon fell apart, as the so-called ‘garden’, turned out to be nothing more than the refurbishment of a small pavement roughly the size of a nearby house’s driveway. To make matters worse, the pavement-garden had already existed for decades, with the only changes being a minor refurbishment and the installation of a pergola.
As soon as the ‘big news’ reached TV screens, social media was inundated with comments ridiculing the minister’s stunt.
Many challenged her to provide details on the actual size of the “pavement” she had just inaugurated, while others mocked her by asking for GPS coordinates in case visitors sarcastically got lost in the “huge” park.
Others took the opportunity to take a dig at former ONE TV chairman, now responsible for the nearby Ta’ Qali Park, insisting that Dalli should have asked Jason Micallef to accompany her during her address on state TV.

This latest ‘inauguration’ forms part of Dalli’s efforts to inflate her government’s commitment to the creation of new green spaces – an exercise in greenwashing that has so far failed to impress.
Through the creation of Project Green, a new government vehicle supposedly tasked with delivering a €700 million greening of the island, few projects have been concluded, with little or no tangible impact.
To make matters worse, the ‘parks’ being inaugurated by Miriam Dalli are often less than the size of a five-a-side football pitch and, in some cases, such as ‘Ġnien il-Fuklar’ in Attard, no larger than a pavement.
At the same time, public funds continue to be dished out to friends and canvassers through direct orders, contracts, and media stunts.
According to recent parliamentary questions by MP Rebekah Borg, the agency led by disgraced former MFSA CEO Joseph Cuschieri, a close friend of Dalli, has spent almost €700,000 on events and marketing to promote Project Green initiatives over the past three years.
Most procurement has been carried out through direct orders.
Among them is a €350,000 contract awarded to XYZ Architects, co-owned by Labour’s former deputy leader Daniel Micallef, and another contract worth more than €1 million awarded to architect Edwin Mintoff for a new garden and car park project in Bormla that was meant to be completed two years ago.
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I welcome their ludicrous self-cONGRATULations. Instead of covering themselves in Glory, they smother themselves in Sh*Te. VOters mAY BE STUPID, BUT THEY ARE NOT THAT STUPID.
I’m afraid they are! We only have to wait a year or so to confirm. Wonderful thing democracy!
Yes all 7000 Attard residents can now enjoy this new “garden” hopefully not at the same time
Dak ir resident li qad jippopa Mal MINISTRU ghax ma qalliex biex il bus stop li ghamlu ghax xemx u ix xita jergaw ippoguh fejn KIEN . Il bus stop il qadim ghandu BUS SHELTER U BAQA VOJT.
KTIBT LIL MINISTRU TAT TRANSPORT U BAQA KOLLOX KIF KIEN.
SUR SINDKU X MORT TAGHMEL BIEX JINQDEW BIK JEW BIEX TIDHER?
Kateline Collins CNN anchor asked D. TRUMP…”How stupid do you think we are?”
Mhux ahjar tiehdu hsieb San Anton u l-President Kitchen Garden, tal-ahhar iktar maghluq milli miftuh, u san anton disastru. Kif ghadkom thalluhom jiehdu t-turisti hemm?
Why was Noddy not there? He loves being on the camera and would attend the opening if a fridge door if he knew a camera was there?
It’s so big he couldn’t find his way to reach her
B’min trid titnejjek din l Ministru li qatt m’ghamlet xejn ghal l ambjent! Jitnejku jghidulna li qed isebbhu l pajjiz u jitnejku bina li qed ituna spazji hodor biex ikomplu jahtfu odz u artijiet tal-gvern halli jkomplu jibnu halli jkomplu bla xkiel u min iqum igerger jghidulu ara kemm tajniek spazji hodor! Ja qatta mafia! Din ghandha zewgha zviluppatur ghal min ma jafx! Din li bniet villa go ODZ. Kollha hekk insomma!! Imma n-nies mhux kollha gahnijiet bhal ma qed jahsbu!
Hey, look at the bright side:
If she’s busy with this nonsense, at least she’s not out there wrecking another million-euro project.
Let’s encourage a couple more ministers to do the same.
In Nepal recently, they discovered a recipe for corruption. Seems it works.
Can someone let us know when The Kitchen Garden in Attard is going to be reopened as it has been closed for maintenance since August of last year? Appreciate if the reopening is done with least possible delay. Thanks.
Kullimkien jigri hekk fejn kien hemm l’ghajta jnsebbhu pajjizna. Cajta tas -sena.
Hlief ideat mibnija min ma ghandux ideat f’dan il mistier, tarahom b’ghajnejk ubtmisshom b’idejk.
Possibli dawn il periti tal gvern qatt ma raw gardin ta’kwalita barra pajjizna. Tal biki meta tiprova taqbad diskorsata maghhom fuq li qed jaghmlu. No f..n idea. Il-flus kollha jmorru fuq nies tac civil, sena shiha xoghol sal hdax u sejrin.
Kollox ghal ghajn dawk li jghoxew bil pjaciri tal lejber. Li jinterresahom hu xi jdahhlu f’bwiethom. L’aqwa il bambin f’maxtura u d dawl fit-tieqa.