COUNCILLORS have demanded the bulldozing of abandoned buildings in the north following claims they were being used for “immoral and illegal” acts.
A proposal signed by four members of the Northern Municipal Council claimed that a number of abandoned buildings were being misused by individuals to sell drugs, commit other crimes and to gather gang members, while empty plots of private land were used as illegal dumping grounds.
They demanded action from authorities to bulldoze the properties and clear the plots of land.
However, the proposal was met with opposition from other council members who warned about the dangers of trespassing on private property – adding that the move would be considered unconstitutional without a court order.
During debate on the issue, the council’s technical committee chairman Abdulla Al Qobaisi highlighted examples in Hamad Town, including a property that was built in the 1990s but never inhabited.
“Is this the scene in a civilised country? Does anyone here want to have abandoned homes in their neighbourhood?” he asked at the council’s weekly meeting.
“The Interior Ministry, the Housing Ministry, and the Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Ministry blame each other for what is going on in these homes and open plots.
“One ministry is responsible for security, the other for the plot that it originally owned and the third for building safety.”
However, the council’s financial and economic affairs committee chairwoman Zaina Jassim said the proposal was unconstitutional because it meant seizing private property.
“We don’t know the circumstances behind why construction of a building or home was never completed or why they have not been knocked down. It could be disputes over inheritance, or the owner may be dead, or is now bankrupt but wants to continue at some point,” she said.
“No one has the right to seize anyone’s property without a court order. No one, including government officials, can trespass.”
Councillor Hussain Al A’ali said the proposal did not present any specific statistics and showed that the issue was related to individual cases rather than a governorate-wide phenomenon.
“We don’t know the circumstances behind those abandoned properties or empty plots and I see the issue as being individual cases and not a phenomenon,” he said.
Harm
“Without statistics I don’t see a course of action relevant on a wide scope.”
Councillor Mohammed Al Dhaen, meanwhile, suggested the homes and plots of land be auctioned off as stalled projects because of “the harm caused to the community”.
“No one agrees with what is going on at these homes and even if they are only 10 in Hamad Town, their effects on society are grave,” he added.
However, Northern Municipality legal affairs head Dr Hussain Al Jamri informed councillors that municipal officials could not file a court case unless the property was deemed dilapidated or a hazard.
“It is a judge’s call to make and not ours, and there are cases in which the home or plot is subject to pending court cases that drag on for ages,” he said.
“Concerned laws could be amended by MPs to help us take action (in such cases).”
Northern Municipality director general Lamya Al Fadhala, who was also present at the meeting, said that clean-up operations could not be conducted at private plots of land because it was costly, which prompted council chairman Ahmed Al Kooheji to reply that he knew construction companies that cleaned up spaces for free because they made business from reselling building refuse and garbage.
Voting on the proposal was postponed for two weeks to give opposing sides time to investigate the issue.
mohammed@gdn.com.bh
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