ALL 232 claims for rain compensation made by Muharraq homeowners and commuters, following Bahrain’s second heaviest reported rainfall ever, have been rejected, a meeting heard.
Baffled members of Muharraq Municipal Council say they have been deluged by complaints from furious constituents disheartened by the Works Ministry snub on supposedly criteria grounds.
Council chairman Abdulaziz Al Naar revealed during the local authority’s regular meeting yesterday at the Muharraq Municipality Complex in Busaiteen that ministry officials informed him that none of the requests have been validated.
“I can’t really understand the reasons for all these rejections,” said Mr Al Naar. “What does it mean when they state that the leakage was not specified or evidenced, raising doubts over electrical appliance damage, or suggesting ‘uncertainty’ over car malfunction.”
Last month, Muharraq councillors sought clarity on the eligibility criteria for rain compensation following complaints that applications from many people whose vehicles were damaged in the deluge had been rejected.
According to the ministry’s damage assessment committee, applications are only to be accepted for those affected by rainwater accumulated in the areas surrounding their houses or due to a defect in the ministry’s sewage networks, not to people who got caught up and suffered in the deluge away from home.
Angry vice-chairman Saleh Buhazaa suggested the compensation offer at the time was made to dampen people’s wrath over the chaos caused by the storm.
“All of the reasons given by Works Ministry officials clearly show that compensation was never going to happen,” he claimed. “The evidence is the 232 compensation bids we have submitted on behalf of the people were completely rejected.
“What will we tell them? To be honest, let the Works Ministry deal with them directly because it is their call not to compensate those affected … not us.”
The council’s technical committee chairman Mohammed Al Mahmood said people have been asked to prove the damage inside their homes or vehicles have come from an infrastructure fault.
“So, unless it is flooded sewers, lack of proper roads or a flooded neighbourhood – any claims for compensation are disregarded,” he added. “A resident in Busaiteen went to Isa Town for work where his car was damaged due to an issue with the road and even his claim was rejected on the basis the his vehicle had been moved from a residential area!
“Commuters still had to attend work during this period, unlike the schools which were closed, so why wasn’t his situation taken into account? Let vehicle experts check the situation, if necessary.”
Questioned
Councillor Mohammed Al Meghawi supported that view and questioned why work in offices and companies had not been suspended if those to be compensated excluded anyone carrying out their duties and responsibilities and whose vehicles were parked away from their homes.
He also cited the case of a driver whose car broke down while returning from burying his father. “There was no way for the family to return home except through a street known to flood during the rains,” he told the meeting.
“Should the family have contacted the ministry to return them to their home by boat?”
Another case involved a surgeon who had two operations scheduled on the two days of heavy rain and his car stalled on the way to the theatre.
“In another instance, a driving instructor had to leave because his trainee had a driving exam but his car broke down in the rainwater surrounding his residential area. There were dozens of similar stories,” said Mr Al Meghawi, adding that any accumulation of rain on the kingdom’s road network should be considered ‘a deficiency’ in the rainwater drainage system.
The proposal for a second review of the rejected compensation claims has been referred to Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture Minister Wael Al Mubarak to forward to Works Minister Ibrahim Al Hawaj to address.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
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