Mohammad Abdullah Okaz/ Saudi Gazette AL-QATIF, EASTERN PROVINCE — Parents of school students complained that their children might start school later than scheduled because construction companies had delayed the completion of the school renovation projects. Hasan Al-Sadeq, parent, said the beginning of the academic year is only a few weeks away and the construction companies are not done with their work yet. “There are open and unattended manholes in the schools. There are visible crevices and fractures on the classrooms' walls. The doors and windows are broken, the restrooms are in bad conditions, waste and garbage is strewn all over the place and the electric cables are exposed,” said Al-Sadeq. He added the Ministry of Education should fine the companies for being inefficient, not meeting the deadline and endangering the children. “The damage left behind by the construction companies' unfinished work cannot be fixed by the maintenance staff of the school. If the companies don't pick up the pace, our children will be forced to go to school while construction is ongoing,” said Al-Sadeq. He added the learning conditions will be extremely disturbing and the children will be exposed to inhaling poisonous and harmful chemicals. Hussain Al-Zair, parent, said by looking at the condition of the schools in the area, finishing before the academic year begins does not look realistic. “There aren't enough construction workers. The workers hours put in will not complete the construction on time and the solution is not to overburden the workers but to hire more. The ministry should have a more proactive role in monitoring the progress of the contracting companies because the companies are violating multiple regulations,” said Al-Zair. He added the ministry should run inspection campaigns and take the necessary decisions to ensure all construction works are done before the academic year begins. Al-Qatif Education Director Abdulkarim Al-Aleet said renovating schools is a lengthy process, which cannot be done within the summer vacation. “The directorate needs to firstly identify the areas of renovation and maintenance, find a company to contract with, contract with the company and then give it four to six months to complete the project. The directorate sign renovation projects on an annual basis,” said Al-Aleet.
