I’m afraid some might
misunderstand this article as it comes a few days after a paid advertisement was
published in the first page in a newspaper… the ad called upon the president to
interfere to find a solution for a serious problem in Gharbiya governorate…
So first, I have to
say that there is no connection between that ad and this article and if there
is a link, it’s the problem that has occupied many people’s minds of those
citizens of Tanta; capital of the middle Delta and capital of Sufism in the
whole Islamic world… Since it holds the mausoleum of the most famous pole of
Sufism; Sidi Ahmed el-Badawi in addition to a bunch of long and modern time
faithful worshippers of God… not to mention other spiritual concepts that are
not less important but it’s not our main issue right now.
The problem is that Tanta
is a closed city in a closed governorate; meaning it has no desert land and
there is no place for urban expansion unless you build over agricultural land
or build higher floors and make good use of the spaces available inside cities
and villages… in a way that is legal and doesn’t ruin the most fertile agricultural
land of Egypt accumulated by the river through millions of years until the accumulated
soil average depth reached 28 meters…
Consequently, that led
to higher prices of buildings’ land and as a result, higher prices of real
estate… in general; housing problems worsened… which makes it absolutely necessary
for officials in charge to take action regarding this problem…
I don’t know the
governor of Gharbiya… but because I’m in touch with what’s going on in the
governorate which I’m honored to be one of its sons as I was born, brought up
and educated there until I reached secondary school… also, through following some
of what is being published, I knew he is an efficient official who knows right
and wrong and fight corruption that spread in our country…
However, I, like
others, have no explanation for ceasing to issue construction permits in Tanta,
which is a model or typical study case for a
poor-in-land-available-for-construction city… as when citizens who seek
construction permits go to have one, they receive very strange answers… the
strangest is inserting the armed forces in the matter…
Meaning if a citizen
possesses a 100 meters square area in an alley or small street in one of the
city’s hamlets or neighborhoods and which will not exceed the specified
altitude as per set by the law of construction in correspondence to the street
width… then he finds no permission because the armed forces is inspecting the
issue of altitudes or taking photos!
In addition to other
false alibis that all led to hindering the construction workforce sector
meaning construction carpenters, steel fixers, wood and steel merchants,
workers working in concrete and others serving those people like tea and food
sellers… not to mention the soaring prices of apartments while people’s savings
are being eaten away; those who have saved every penny waiting to build a house
or another floor, or buy an apartment… and then they find all their savings
withering away due to inflation and high prices…
All this while
officials in charge are paying no attention to the problem… now I ask both the
governor and minister of domestic governance whom I know is a real straight man
that can never accept to harm those poor people… I also ask the prime minister:
why have you ceased to issue construction permits in Tanta and may be other
cities in the governorate?... I also don’t know if such decision applies to all
cities in Egypt or it’s only applied on unlucky Tanta?
Should people publish
paid ads in newspapers calling upon the president to solve the problem and
interfere for the sake of protecting people’s interests and livelihoods since
he is the only one who declares and insists that he shall protect the poor and
look after their interests?
If this is the case…
then what I write here is in turn a call for president Sisi to interfere to
save Tanta; capital of Delta and capital of all Sufism capitals in the Islamic
world… This call regarding such issue is complementing what I wrote in last
week’s article about the necessity to fight the vicious corruption that is
eating away our country…
If such corruption is
clear and evident in the structure and system of the foreign affairs ministry
as I said in last week’s article… then what happens in Gharbiya governorate
regarding tackling the problem of lack of lands available for construction is a
consecration for such corruption which aims at undermining people’s sense of
belonging to this nation and popularity enjoyed by the president personally…
instead of working hard to increase such popularity, officials work as if they
are appointed to hit it in the core.
So Mr. Governor, will
you please find a way out for the construction permits’ problem?... no one ask
for exceptions or breaking the law… just imagine that you have cashed in your pension
reward and then decided to build a house on a piece of land you inherited, and
then you find no permit without a clear convincing reason.
I believe the
president has enough problems and crisis to tackle… and he has already declared
days ago that the governor is the president of his governorate… so will you
please Mr. Governor find a way out for such problem instead of calling upon the
president to interfere himself?
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
This
article was published in Al Ahram newspaper on August 4, 2016.
To
see the original article, go to:
#alahram
#ahmed_elgammal #tanta
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