1 comment.Gozo’s aqueduct and the politics of delay: “A monument in name, neglected in practice”
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In May, the aqueduct in Victoria was granted the highest level of protection – Grade 1, by the Planning Authority, said Nationalist Party candidate Luke Said. He added that, however “it is neglected and in a state of decay.”
He noted that in 2022 the Ministry for Gozo had promised full restoration by 2025. “But three years later, the Victoria-to-Victoria aqueduct is still falling apart, piece by piece, stone by stone. And the promised restoration? It’s still on paper.”
The PN candidate added that “timeframes were issued, tenders drafted, promises made. But by mid-2025, the only visible result is a single support beam wedged beneath one arch. The stonework continues to crumble.”
In November 2023, Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri had reiterated again that the restoration and conservation project on the Victoria aqueduct was due to be completed by the end of 2025.
The first phase of works, the urgent consolidation of the vulnerable parts of the aqueducts, was completed in 2017 under the then Gozo Minister, Justyne Caruana.
Built in the 19th century during British rule, this aqueduct is one of the last remaining civil engineering structures of its kind in Gozo. It once supplied clean water to the heart of Gozo and symbolised the ingenuity of a bygone era.
Luke Said argued that “today, it symbolises something else entirely: the institutional neglect of Gozo’s heritage.”
He went on to say that “despite its recent designation as a national monument, an important legal and cultural recognition, the aqueduct receives no meaningful protection in practice.”
“There are no workers on site. No scaffolding. No urgency. Just silence.” Said insisted that, “this isn’t a matter of funding or expertise. Both exist. What’s missing is follow-through. The Ministry has the jurisdiction. It clearly lacks the political will to act decisively before another piece of Gozo’s history collapses.”
He said that, “the people of Gozo are not asking for miracles. We’re asking for maintenance. Not for applause, but for action. Not for slogans, but for stonework.”
Luke Said concluded by saying that, “if our institutions truly believe in safeguarding heritage, then let them start here. Restore the aqueduct, not with words, but with workers. Not with timeframes, but with tools. Gozo deserves better than scaffolding promises.”
Photo: Luke Said
I do remember vividly that during the Hon Minister of Gozo Dr Justyne Caruana, plans were already made for the restoration of these Adaquats. What has happened for this delay from Dr Justyne Caruana’s time till now. Why has everything previously planned by othe Gozitan Ministers have not been implimented by those which came later?