In Lebanon, there’s a saying: “Everything in our life is filled with challenges, except for the roads.” However, despite the severe crises, Lebanon’s roads are in better condition than ours.
As winter approaches and the rainy season draws near, the state of the roads is deplorable and expected to worsen. It appears that neither the Ministry of Public Works nor the Public Authority for Roads and Land Transportation (PART) are aware of the citizens’ and residents’ suffering.
The government’s neglect is deeply disappointing. Even if the maintenance process were to commence now, it would be impossible to complete it before the onset of rainfall. This led my colleague Badr Al Bahr, in his recent article, to call for the resignation of Minister of Public Works Amani Bugamaz due to numerous errors.
Al Bahr ridiculed the meetings Bugamaz held with companies from advanced and major countries, as if she were planning a military operation rather than discussing the appropriate asphalt blend necessary for road maintenance.
Bugamaz’s failures and shortcomings were glaring, particularly evident in her meeting with the parliamentary committee for public facilities.
She contradicted her earlier statements when floating road maintenance tenders to companies, most of which had local agents, despite pledging to dismiss any company with a local agent.
Furthermore, she admitted that none of the roads have maintenance contracts at present, despite promising signed contracts by July 2023. We are now in October, and no contracts have been signed.
Bugamaz’s response to a parliamentary inquiry was truly astounding when she mentioned she had no knowledge about the quality of the asphalt blend used by the contractors since 2019.
She added that the same blend was included in the recent tender requirements, and she hadn’t had enough time to review it. When asked about the source of labor and equipment for the new contracts, she astonishingly stated she did not know and suggested that the contractors might hire labor and equipment locally or even bring their own from abroad.
This would significantly delay the process and contradict her earlier commitments, rendering Bugamaz’s promises seemingly unattainable within the defined timeframe.
In response to another question regarding what would happen if the contractors applying for the maintenance tenders did not agree to reduce their offer prices, she mentioned she would cancel the tenders and refloat them.
Additionally, she considered assigning some American companies for emergent cases in different governorates. This approach seems nonsensical and implies a further delay in the process. It’s disheartening that Bugamaz remains in office.
The numerous violations and issues at the Ministry of Public Works make it imperative to reconsider assigning the task to PART for road paving and maintenance, as it is the specialized and competent institution, provided a strong and honest leader is appointed.
I echo the commendations made by Badr Al Bahr in his recent article, especially regarding Kuwait’s history of high-quality asphalt during the tenure of contracting companies like Musaed Al Saleh & Sons, as well as other capable firms, particularly during the term of former Minister of Public Works Humoud Al Nisf. Notably, Musaed Al Saleh’s company is still operational but under a modern approach and a different name.
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By Ahmad alsarraf
