Editorial
Chaos reigns supreme in road repair
No coordination among utility agencies
This year is no different from years gone by when the many utility agencies commence their various repairs works that involve digging up roads and leaving them in a state of disrepair after completion of the job at hand. Interestingly, practically all the agencies, whether it be the laying of new water pipes by WASA or the repair of gas lines, work during the rainy season that not only prolongs the particular job at hand but adds to the misery of city dwellers who must travel through sludge or mud ridden roads. The incidents of accidents increase manifold as vehicles get either stuck or overturn as they run over pot holes; while the average pedestrian must count extra pennies and countless hours having to ride rickshaws to get from Point A to B, since roads are inundated by the downpour.
We are forced to ask precisely why all agencies cannot coordinate their activities with one another and precisely why the activities of different utility bodies cannot be staggered throughout the year so that the damage to city roads is lessened and public woes mitigated. It remains a mystery to us as to why each agency must dig up the roads every single year. If it is a major new activity like enhancement of the sewerage network that is understandable. But then, why do we need maintenance every single year? Public utilities in other cities of the world do not undergo such extensive round-the-year activity. The question that comes to mind is that either our service providers are not doing the work properly resulting in poor workmanship or there is rampant corruption involving a nexus between contractors and corrupt officials who gain financially by doing repeat jobs on the same work.
The fact that the city corporation is unable to maintain deadlines within which other agencies must complete their work is a particularly disturbing trend. The question of city government becomes more imperative for a way out of this bureaucratic quagmire. Bringing all utility services under one body could perhaps pave the way for some reprieve for city dwellers as both planning and execution of services would be done by one central authority.
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