Mark Anthony Sammut

My article published in the Times of Malta issue of Tuesday 29th May 2012. The latest in the series of pie-in-the-sky pre-election promises that has been thrown to our electorate is Joseph Muscat's guarantee that all young people at the age of 16 will be studying, training, or in employment. I am coming to the conclusion that Joseph Muscat is either spending too much time with Yana Mintoff Bland (who seems to believe that the Malta she returned to is the same Malta she left in 1962 or the one her father would have described to her in the eighties), or he is so immersed in projecting his 'modern Mintoff' image that he is oblivious to the fact the times have changed. Studying in Malta is not only free till we are 16, but till we complete tertiary education, and even further than that thanks to the various scholarship schemes introduced in these past years (because thankfully, we didn't heed his call to stay out of the EU). Moreover, we even get paid for in

I was invited by the Nationalist Party to present a suggestion to the Prime Minister as a telecommunications engineer and post-graduate student, at the dialogue held at the newly inaugurated Aviation Park at Safi. Below is a short summary of what I spoke about. It may not be a word-by-word transcription of what I said as I have to rely on notes and memory. Prim Ministru, Jiena Mark Sammut, gradwajt bħala inġinier mill-Universita’ ta’ Malta, u ilni għal dan l-aħħar 4 snin naħdem ma’ kumpanija privata fil-qasam tat-telekomunikazzjoni. Grazzi wkoll għall-iSTEPS, programm ta’ boroż ta’ studju ko-finanzjat mill-Gvern Malti u mill-Unjoni Ewropea, f’dawn l-aħħar sentejn segwejt kors ta’ Masters fil-qasam tat-telekomunikazzjoni ma' universita’ barranija. Ma nistax ma nibdiex billi nuri l-apprezzament tiegħi għall-fiduċja li l-Gvern Malti għandu fina, u tal-opportunitajiet kollha li għandna miftuħin quddiemna. Hija l-garanzija ta’ dawn l-opportunitajiet li tixpruna liż-żg

I happened to watch a part of Bondi+ tonight, and these were some of the declarations made by Adrian Vassallo, a Labour MP since 1996: "I received no reply from him. Nothing. He doesn't even look at me in Parliament." "The Labour Parliamentary Group has become just a rubber-stamp of what the Leader says. First, your colleagues come to fill you up with "say this, say that", and then, as soon as the Leader disagrees with you, they come out against you to agree with him." "So he came out to defend Cyrus Engerer on his pending court case, and I, who was given a free-vote on a matter of conscience, was publicly attacked by him in that manner because I exercised the free-vote he told me I had." "The emphasis is no longer on the party, it's on the movement. Why a movement? It's a movement whose sole aim is to bring down the Nationalists, and then we'll see. But let's start discussing what we are going to do, what are

Some of the ardent Labour supporters were yesterday proudly sharing on social media a photo of Muscat surrounded by youngsters beside a photo of Gonzi surrounded with somewhat older followers, the message being that Muscat is the new hope for our youths. Let's leave to the side the obvious: that Muscat's Labour is based on media marketing and perceptions, rather than policies and decisions. We're on the brink of a general election and we still don't have a clue at how he is realistically going to keep his promises (though Labour's current enthusiasm for Hollande's victory might suggest how: he promised an increase in the highest bracket of taxation to 75%). And let's never mind that if it were for Muscat's anti-EU campaign, we wouldn't be able to dream half of the dreams and aspirations we have today. The point is that I'd rather compare what the two leaders are actually saying than how they are posing for photographs. Here's an exampl

The Agones 'Pago' Series is a series of 4 events organised by the Agones SFC in collaboration with the Gudja Local Council, held in the surroundings of Gudja valley during the months of May, June and July. The series consists of 4 races: - a 5 km trail-run, next Friday 4th May at 7.30pm, - a 20km bike time trial which can be done by mountain bike or road bike, Sunday 27th May, - a 20km night mountain-bike race, the only one held in the island, Friday 8th June, - and finally an off-road duathlon - 2km run, 15km bike, 5km run - on Sunday 15th July, the occasion of Jum il-Gudja. The series routes are planned so that everyone can have a blast whether one is a seasoned athlete or a newbie. One can either take part in the whole series or just in one event.  The series kicks-off next Friday, with the trail-run which starts and ends near Ta' Loreto Chapel, limits of Gudja (just by Hal Far Road near the airport runway). More info on the webpage  and  fa

Brandon Pace and Lara Gerada are for the third year running going to attempt a very long distance walk. This year they will be walking for approximately 145km (the distance of 3 and a half marathons), lasting 30 hours, and basically going around the whole island of Malta. As in the previous years everybody is being invited to join in for as long as they wish, transport will be provided.   They will be collecting for the Malta Community Chest Fund, so please help them raise funds by participating and enticing your friends to attend.  All related information about this walk can be found on the website: http://www.30hourwalk.com/   or on the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/30HourWalk . The site also lists the checkpoints along the way for people who want to join for part of the walk. Good luck Lara and Brandon!