Crackdown on illegal structures launched

The Municipality of Abu Dhabi has launched a new campaign to do away with makeshift structures that create unhygienic living conditions for people in the city and its suburbs.

The campaign is aimed at bringing an end to appurtenances made to residential villas and apartments as well as commercial buildings in the Capital, without permission, which do not comply with decent living conditions.

“For any modification of an accommodation unit there is a legal procedure...people must get the prior permission from the authorities concerned...These acts without permission are illegal,” said Owaida Al Qubaisi, Acting Executive Director of Municipal Services Sector at the Municipality.

Launched by the Municipality in collaboration with the General Directorate of Abu Dhabi Police in mid-September at Baniyas, Wathba, Shamkha and Shawamekh, the campaign has covered about 4,000 quarters, with 645 warnings issued so far.

Al Qubaisi further explained: “The campaign also highlights the importance of adhering to the prescribed health stipulations and laws governing such activities, and guaranteeing a specific work mechanism based on the powers granted to the inspection teams, as well as the laws and regulations governing these procedures.

“As per the law, the offenders will be issued an initial written warning with a grace period to remove the offence”, he said.

Al Qubaisi said the objective of staging these campaigns is to enhance the compliance with the provisions of Law No (1) for 2011 regulating the occupancy of residential units in the Abu Dhabi Emirate along with its Executive Regulation. In cooperation with the bodies concerned, the Municipality is continuing these campaigns and the enforcement of judicial rulings issued in respect of villas and buildings in breach of the building code throughout Abu Dhabi and is taking appropriate measures including the demolition and removal of offences.

With high demand for properties, but short supplies, Abu Dhabi City is now one of the most expensive cities with a huge number of low-income workers who cannot afford to own apartments, thus are forced to go for sharing accommodation units that are set up illegally.

Taking advantage of the situation, many unscrupulous people hunt for old buildings, take them on annual contract and turn them into big colonies for low-income bachelors. “A decent apartment of two bedrooms is available for families from Dh50,000 to Dh70,000 a year. But the same apartment in an old building is worth from Dh100,000 to Dh200,000,” said a Pakistani male bachelor, identifying himself as Musa, who shares a room with six others.

He said he pays Dh1,000 a month for his bed-space. “In our two bedroom plus hall apartment, we are 22 people. The building is very old with the elevator out of action most of the time.

This is the cheapest place we could afford in Abu Dhabi City. We cannot go and live in the outskirts of the city as we work here in the city,” he added. Similar grievances were expressed by a female bachelor from Philippines, who said she lives in a single bedroom plus hall apartment with 18 other female co-workers.

“The apartment is provided by our company and has been partitioned to help accommodate us all. We have one bathroom a kitchen and find it very difficult to manage,” said the woman, identifying herself as Maria.

nissar@khaleejtimes.com