Editorial: Closing up the construction cracks

The attention paid to recent tragedies due to their high-profile presence online makes it is all too easy to forget that construction failures are not a recent phenomenon.

But, long before social media brought the horror onto people’s newsfeeds, there were other cases of contractors and even architects failing to protect the public.

The situation now can only be worse, as greed has inspired utterly unqualified companies to try to jump onto the construction bandwagon.

Add to this feeding frenzy the fact that dozens of two-storey houses are being replaced by multi-storey blocks, erected at breakneck speed, leaving neighbours to contend with cracks, holes and even total collapses.

The mother of victim Jean Paul Sofia and the family of Miriam Pace have been relentlessly pushing for real change but there are far too many words and far too little action.

Courts decry architects’ shortcomings, but – as in the case of a 2020 appeals court judgment on the death of a woman in Cathedral Street, Sliema 20 years before – it is useless unless they actually pay up.

Money will never bring back the victim, Rita Vella, but the compensation was meant to reinforce the message that this should never have happened in the first place.

In more recent years, we have seen the Building Industry Consultative Council shut down and a new authority – the Building and Construction Authority – set up. Projects supposedly need site managers and workers need skills cards (the Nationalist Party wants them to be mandatory by 2027).

And, yet, the accidents continue.

The comprehensive report following the death of Sofia has resulted in numerous measures being introduced by the government – following wide consultation. It sounded marvellous but, alas, all the laws and regulations in the world will not make a tad of difference unless they are respected. And how can they act as a deterrent or establish higher standards unless they are enforced?

The intention is to appoint more inspectors but, no matter how many there are, it will never be enough.

Photos appear regularly of workers at construction sites without the necessary safety gear, or of others dangling precariously. In the meantime, photos show buildings with deteriorating balconies and cracked walls being held up by sheer luck.

The Chamber of Architects appears to be doing what it can. It has suspended the two architects involved in the Pace case – subject to appeal – but that would only be for 14 and 28 months. It is an important step but does it go far enough?

It also reached an agreement with the BCA on outlining the correct processes to follow in any given circumstance. Should we praise the agreement – or fret about the inconsistencies that preceded it? Although tower crane are omnipresent, it is not just new constructions that are a cause for concern: there are still far too many buildings that are languishing without maintenance, as the recent cases show.

The Chamber of Architects has been calling for inspections every 10 years, not only of the fabric of buildings but also of their electrical wiring, lift installations and even fire safety.

People who were affected by tragedies or collapses in the past must receive justice and real measures must be in place to ensure that they are avoided, whether through real deterrents or through foolproof enforcement.

Public outrage continues to mount over an apparently untouchable construction industry. It’s a shame to know this troubling situation persists because we consistently place profits ahead of public safety and wellbeing.