Doha: A majority of respondents to the Al Sharq weekly survey called for strict implementation of safety rules for buildings by the Civil Defence.
Ninety percent of those surveyed said that they support Civil Defence in the strict implementation of safety rules. Five percent said that it was not necessary to be very strict, while the other five percent remained neutral.
The second question in the survey asked the people if they agreed with the steps taken by the Civil Defence in the case of the new Hamad International Airport, to which some 71 percent agreed with the delay in the opening of the airport. Some five percent did not express any opinion, while 24 percent felt that the steps were too extreme.
Al Sharq asked a number of nationals and expatriates about the findings of the survey
Nasr Al Rafai praised the Civil Defence for the strict implementation of safety rules, particularly for not being biased towards any company or corporation.
“This is in the interest of the corporation as well as the people,” Al Rafai said, adding that closing down buildings or areas because of an obvious lack of safety standards is necessary.
“The delay in the opening is acceptable compared to risking lives,” he said.
Adil Al Shimari said that the Civil Defence are updating their systems with the latest technology but there was a need for the expansion of work in different parts of the country, in addition to training more people.
Mubarak Al Sulaiti, meanwhile, pointed out that delay in projects was normal.
“Even when companies are handing over projects after construction has ended, sometimes the requirements are not fulfilled which makes the parties take up issues to the court,” he said.
Al Sulaiti also said it was not known whether these safety measures had been made mandatory before construction on the new airport began.
“I don’t know whether these safety requirements were there before the contract was signed for the construction of the new airport,” he said.
Another legal expert said that all the construction requirements need to be fulfilled because they are part of the contract and that any breaches in contract should be taken to the court by the concerned bodies.
The Peninsula
