To steal and paraphrase a line from Claude Rains in the movie Casablanca: “I’m shocked! Just shocked that there is flooding in Madinah!”
But that would be a lie, wouldn’t it? Every time it rains somewhere in Saudi Arabia, we cross our fingers and hope that we are not under a bridge that will collapse, drive down a street just ahead of a roaring 10-meter-high wall of brown water, or scramble for buckets to catch water from a leaking roof.
Although my hometown of Madinah has not suffered like Jeddah and Riyadh have in the past, it still boils my blood to see the streets awash in water. Main roads in Yanbu have collapsed under even modest amounts of rainfall. We know that nature is tough and has no mercy, but there is no excuse for a nation with such tremendous natural resources and wealth to be saddled with infrastructure that reflects the construction methods of a third-world country.
How do Jeddah and Riyadh compare to the great cities of Europe and North America? Although these Saudi cities share the same population sizes as Paris, Berlin and Chicago among others, the similarities end there. You can be guaranteed safe passage on European and North American city streets during poor weather while in the Kingdom one must take his life in his own hands just to drive home from work. There is simply no excuse for not having roads, curbs, gutters and water drainage systems on par with developed nations.
For the past few years, Saudis have read reports of increased expenditures in infrastructure projects. Indeed, in Jeddah alone, the main roads now boast flyovers and widened streets in congested areas. There has been improvement. Yet since the Jeddah floods of 2009-2011, we really can’t say that flooding has eased to safe levels. For one, the weather has been relatively calm since those terrible years, so we don’t really know that the added infrastructure has improved safety.
But let’s consider Saudi Arabia’s track record in infrastructure spending. A recent report by the National Commercial Bank claims that an estimated SR230 billion worth of infrastructure projects are scheduled to be finished by the end of this year. These funds include projects approved between 2008 and the third quarter of 2013. During the first three quarters of 2013, an estimated SR 210 billion in contracts were awarded to building companies.
As John Sfakianakis, chief investment strategist at Masic in Saudi Arabia, told reporters recently, “Without proper infrastructure it will be hard for any country to reach its full potential and compete. The level of expenditure in the infrastructure sector over the past couple of years has put the Kingdom in a position to provide its citizens with improved road networks, water distribution, power extensions and airport/rail services.”
This is all well and good on paper, but the reality is that the very people who rely on the infrastructure to keep them safe have no idea whether every riyal is actually spent on authorized projects. While the public received a measure of satisfaction when a number of individuals were convicted of corruption in the courts stemming from the collapse of Jeddah’s infrastructure during the floods, not a single name was published to name and shame those criminals. As a consequence, there was no accountability in the public sphere for the actions of hard-hearted men who were more interested in their own selfish welfare than the public good. And the neglect of the public good led to the deaths of scores of people.
To build infrastructure that is worthy of the country’s citizens, accountability and transparency are essential. That means an independent body to overlook the implementation of big projects. That should include the bidding process, expenditures and the quality of materials used in construction. That same independent body should have the authority to prosecute individuals for fraud and corruption if evidence is found of such conduct.
Finally, strict regulations must be implemented when companies subcontract government projects. We can’t afford signing billion-Saudi-Riyal project contracts without oversight. To make a profit is legitimate, but to cheat the Ummah is forbidden.
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