Dozens of Gozitans are holding a Press Conference today outside the Archbishop’s Curia in Floriana to demand that the Archbishop reverses his decision to hand over control of a medieval foundation to ruthless speculators. These speculators are threatening many residents in Qala and Nadur with eviction, increasing the leases of farmers and building monstrous projects that are ruining Gozo’s landscape and natural environment.

Residents are today calling on the Archbishop to dismiss Patrick Valentino from rector of the Abbazia, initiate legal action to annul the transfer of Abbazia’s land to private companies as well as seek legal remedies to cancel the 2017 agreement with speculators.

Their predicament is a result of Archbishop Scicluna’s decision in 2017 to appoint Dr Patrick Valentino as rector of the Abbazia di Sant Antonio delli Navarra, acceding to the wishes of powerful businessmen and other influential figures who had been trying to take over swathes of land in Gozo for two decades and a half. 

The Abbazia was founded by noblewoman Cosmana Navarra in the 17th century, placing land she owned under control of the foundation and giving power to the Archbishop to appoint a rector who administers these lands for the benefit of the foundation. The rector has to be a male descendant of Cosmana’s nephew Federico or, in his absence, a priest. 

The current absurd but tragic saga started in 1992 when, out of nowhere, a certain Richard Stagno Navarra claimed descent from Cosmana Navarra and rectorship of the Abbazia. At the time, the Archbishop’s Curia resisted and in 2013 won the court battle that confirmed the Archbishop’s right to appoint the rector. However, in 2017 a bolt out of the blue struck residents and farmers when, inexplicably, Archbishop Scicluna accepted the Stagno Navarras’ descent claims and appointed a rector of their choice, Dr Patrick Valentino. The new rector immediately started transferring land to companies owned by the Stagno Navarras, by Gozitan lawyer Carmelo Galea and by ex-magistrate Dennis Montebello and his children, one of who is Dr Valentino’s partner.  

Shockingly, Archbishop Scicluna recently admitted in Court that he never verified the Stagno Navarras’ claims of descent from Cosmana Navarra. 

Archbishop Scicluna’s decision to hand over control of the foundation to ruthless and powerful figures opened the floodgates to threats against Gozitan residents and monstrous development projects. The Abbazia under the new rector, as well as the companies connected to it, began to claim ownership over lands where many families in Qala and Nadur have lived for generations, in some cases challenging the legal title held by these families and in other cases rushing to register lands in the Abbazia’s name on the basis of medieval documents with poorly-defined maps. These registrations were quickly approved by the Land Registry in Gozo. 

Families in Qala and Nadur are now being hounded for large sums of money by the Abbazia and other companies owned by the same group of people, placing them under immense pressure and stress for the past four years as well as leaving them with a pervasive feeling of injustice.

Apart from residents, farmers tilling land claimed by the Abbazia are also being asked for ridiculous increases in the price of their leases, with some starting to let go of the land they have cultivated for generations.

Moreover, undeveloped land claimed by the Abbazia was given to developers for monstrous projects. On such land, Joseph Portelli is currently building a massive complex in Ta’ Kassja consisting of hundreds of apartments engulfing the locality of Qala. Titan Developments Ltd. is applying for another hideous apartment block on agricultural land in Nadur. Many hundreds of people have objected to the project. The Planning Commission is scheduled to decide on the Nadur project on Wednesday 15th December. 

In 1992 a handful of powerful persons concocted an incredible plan to hoodwink residents and build on undeveloped land in Gozo. In 2017, Archbishop Scicluna made the actualization of their plan possible by handing them over swathes of land with the stroke of a pen, no questions asked. Scicluna is responsible for the suffering of hundreds of persons and for enabling greed that is destroying Gozo’s environment. 

In his testimony in court on 12 November, Archbishop Scicluna admitted that the land belongs to the foundation and that rector has to leave the land intact. But the Archbishop cannot feign ignorance of the consequences his actions have had, because it ought to have been clear in 2017 that relinquishing control of the Abbazia meant giving it to persons who simply wanted to make huge profits from the land. 

In view of the above, we are calling on Archbishop Scicluna to take responsibility for his actions and honour his obligations, both moral and those under the contract of foundation, by:

• Immediately revoking the decree appointing Patrick Valentino, and hence dismissing him, from rector of the Abbazia. By the Archbishop’s own admission, Valentino was not supposed to transfer large lands to private companies which are now making millions in profit from the development on this land. 

• Initiate legal action to annul contracts granting these lands to private companies on the basis that such transfers go against the contract of foundation of the Abbazia, as well as the long-term interest of the Abbazia. The Archbishop has a moral duty to act in accordance with responsibilities and faculties placed on him by the foundress Cosmana Navarra.

• Seek legal remedies to get the contracts of 27 February 2017 and 26 March 2018 annulled because these have led to situations that are extremely damaging to residents and farmers in Nadur and Qala, the environment in Gozo, the long term interests of the foundation, and the interests of the church itself, whose standing is being battered by this saga.  

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Teħid tal-art f’Għawdex – ir-residenti jitolbu lill-Arċisqof Scicluna biex ma jkomplix iħalli l-ispekulaturi jeqirdulhom ħajjithom u l-ambjent

Grupp ta’ Għawdxin sejħu konferenza stampa illum quddiem il-Kurja fil-Furjana sabiex jitolbu lill-Arċisqof jirrevoka d-deċiżjoni tiegħu li jagħti l-kontroll ta’ fondazzjoni medjevali lil spekulaturi bla ħniena. Dawn l-ispekulaturi qed jheddu lil bosta residenti tal-Qala u n-Nadur bi żgumbrament, iżidu l-kirjiet tal-bdiewa u jibnu proġetti mostrużi b’detriment għall-pajsaġġ u l-ambjent naturali ta’ Għawdex.

Ir-residenti llum qed jappellaw lill-Arċisqof biex ikeċċi lil Patrick Valentino minn rettur tal-Abbazija, biex jiftaħ azzjoni legali li tannulla t-trasferiment tal-art tal-Abbazija lil kumpaniji privati u li jfittex rimedji legali biex iħassar il-ftehim tal-2017 mal-ispekulaturi.

Din is-sitwazzjoni hija riżultat tad-deċiżjoni li ħa l-Arċisqof Scicluna fl-2017 meta ħatar lil Dr Patrick Valentino bħala r-rettur tal-Abbazia di Sant Antonio delli Navarra, u aġevola b’hekk ix-xewqat ta’ negozjanti b’saħħithom u figuri influwenti oħra li ilhom żewġ deċennji u nofs jippruvaw jieħdu f’idejhom meded kbar ta’ art f’Għawdex.

L-Abbazija twaqqfet min-nobbli Cosmana Navarra fis-seklu 17, meta din tat il-kontroll ta’ artha lill-fondazzjoni u s-setgħa lill-Arċisqof li jaħtar rettur li jamministra l-art għall-ġid tal-fondazzjoni. Ir-rettur irid ikun dixxendent maskili tan-neputi ta’ Cosmana, Federico, jew, fl-assenza tiegħu, qassis.

Din is-saga assurda iżda traġika bdiet fl-1992 meta, minn imkien, tfaċċa ċertu Richard Stagno Navarra li sostna li huwa dixxendent ta’ Cosmana Navarra u sostna wkoll li għandu jkun rettur tal-Abbazija. Dak iż-żmien, il-Kurja tal-Arċisqof irreżistiet u fl-2013 rebħet anki l-battalja fil-qorti li kkonfermat id-dritt tal-Arċisqof li jaħtar ir-rettur. Madankollu, fl-2017 ir-residenti u l-bdiewa ntlaqtu minn sajjetta fil-bnazzi meta l-Arċisqof Scicluna, mingħajr spjega, aċċetta li jilqa’ d-dixxendenza li kienet qegħda ssostni l-familja Stagno Navarra u ħatar ir-rettur li għażlu huma, Dr Patrick Valentino. Ir-rettur il-ġdid beda minnufih jittrasferixxi l-art lill-kumpaniji tal-familja Stagno Navarra, tal-avukat Għawdxi Carmelo Galea u tal-eks-maġistrat Dennis Montebello u wliedu, fosthom is-sieħba ta’ Dr Valentino.

Xukkanti ferm huwa l-fatt li l-Arċisqof Scicluna ammetta reċentement fil-Qorti li huwa qatt ma vverifika t-talba tal-familja Stagno Navarra li tiġi rikonoxxuta d-dixxendenza tagħhom minn Cosmana Navarra.

Id-deċiżjoni tal-Arċisqof Scicluna li jgħaddi l-kontroll tal-fondazzjoni lil figuri potenti u bla ħniena fetħet il-bibien beraħ għat-theddid kontra r-residenti Għawdxin u proġetti mostrużi ta’ żvilupp. L-Abbazija taħt ir-rettur il-ġdid, kif ukoll il-kumpaniji konnessi magħha, qegħdin jitolbu s-sjieda ta’ artijiet fejn ħafna familji tal-Qala u n-Nadur ilhom jgħixu għal ġenerazzjonijiet sħaħ. F’xi każijiet, il-poteri l-ġodda saħansitra ikkontestaw id-dritt legali ta’ dawn il-familji għall-art, u f’każijiet oħra għaġġlu biex jirreġistraw l-artijiet f’isem l-Abbazija abbażi ta’ dokumenti medjevali b’mapep dgħajfa mil-lat ta’ definizzjonijiet tal-limiti. Dawn ir-reġistrazzjonijiet ġew approvati malajr mir-Reġistru tal-Artijiet ta’ Għawdex.

Grupp ta’ familji mill-Qala u n-Nadur issa qed jiġu mfittxija għal somom kbar ta’ flus mill-Abbazija u kumpaniji oħra li huma proprjetà tal-istess grupp ta’ nies, u ilhom għal dawn l-aħħar erba’ snin taħt pressjoni u stress enormi kif ukoll b’sens kbir ta’ inġustizzja kontrihom.

Apparti s-sitwazzjoni tar-residenti, il-bdiewa li jħaddmu l-art li issa qed tintalab mill-Abbazija qed jiffaċċjaw żidiet redikoli fil-prezz tal-kirjiet tagħhom u uħud minnhom kellhom saħansitra jħallu warajhom art li ilhom jikkultivaw għal ġenerazzjonijiet sħaħ.

Barra minn hekk, l-art verġni li qed titlob sjieda tagħha l-Abbazija ngħatat lil żviluppaturi għal proġetti mostrużi. Fuq din l-art, Joseph Portelli bħalissa qed jibni l-kumpless massiv f’Ta’ Kassja li jikkonsisti f’mijiet ta’ appartamenti li qed joħonqu l-Qala. Titan Developments Ltd. qegħdin japplikaw għal blokka kerha oħra ta’ appartamenti fin-Nadur. Mijiet ta’ nies oġġezzjonaw għall-proġett. Il-Kummissjoni tal-Ippjanar skedata li tiddeċiedi dwar il-proġett tan-Nadur nhar l-Erbgħa 15 ta’ Diċembru.

Fl-1992 numru żgħir ta’ persuni potenti ħadmu pjan ma jitwemminx sabiex iqarrqu bir-residenti u jkunu jistgħu jibnu fuq art mhux żviluppata f’Għawdex. Fl-2017, l-Arċisqof Scicluna ippermetta s-seħħ tal-pjan bid-daqqa tal-pinna tiegħu u mingħajr mistoqsijiet għaddhielhom medda sħiħa ta’ art. Scicluna huwa b’hekk responsabbli għat-tbatija ta’ mijiet ta’ persuni u r-regħba li qed teqred l-ambjent ta’ Għawdex.

Fix-xhieda tiegħu fil-Qorti fit-12 ta’ Novembru, l-Arċisqof Scicluna ammetta li l-art hija proprjetà tal-fondazzjoni u li r-rettur obbligat li jħalli l-art intatta. Iżda l-Arċisqof ma jistax jinjora l-konsegwenzi tal-azzjonijiet tiegħu u kellu jkun ċar fl-2017 li meta huwa ħeles mill-kontroll tal-Abbazija dan fisser li l-kontroll mar għand persuni li sempliċiment riedu jagħmlu profitti kbar mill-art.

Fid-dawl ta’ dan, qed nappellaw lill-Arċisqof Scicluna biex jerfa’ r-responsabbiltà tal-azzjonijiet tiegħu u jonora kemm l-obbligi morali tiegħu kif ukoll dawk marbuta mal-kuntratt tal-fondazzjoni, billi:

• jirrevoka immedjatament id-digriet tal-ħatra ta’ Patrick Valentino u b’hekk ineħħieh minn rettur tal-Abbazija. L-Arċisqof stess ammetta li Valentino ma kellux jittrasferixxi artijiet kbar lil kumpaniji privati ​​li issa qed jagħmlu qliegħ ta’ miljuni mill-iżvilupp ta’ din l-art.

• jiftaħ azzjoni legali li tannulla l-kuntratti li jagħtu dawn l-artijiet lil kumpaniji privati ​​fuq il-bażi li t-tali trasferimenti jmorru kontra l-kuntratt tal-fondazzjoni tal-Abbazija u l-interess fit-tul tagħha. L-Arċisqof għandu d-dmir morali li jaġixxi skont ir-responsabbiltajiet u l-fakultajiet mogħtija lilu skont it-termini tal-fundatriċi Cosmana Navarra. 

• ifittex rimedji legali sabiex il-kuntratti tas-27 ta’ Frar 2017 u 26 ta’ Marzu 2018 jiġu annullati għax dawn wasslu għal ħsara kbira għar-residenti u l-bdiewa fin-Nadur u l-Qala, l-ambjent ta’ Għawdex, l-interessi fit-tul tal-fondazzjoni, u l-interessi tal-knisja stess li tul din is-saga ħadet daqqa fir-reputazzjoni tagħha.