Flood zone reminiscent of a black hole

A statement by Deputy Prime Minister Abid Sharifov on the allocation of funds for the restoration of 1,400 houses and the construction of 700 new houses in the flood zone has confused the issue.

According to him, money has been transferred to the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES). But contrary to previous practice, the MES will not build the houses. The money will be given during the month to the affected families, so that they may restore the houses.

      Sharifov did not say what money he meant, nor who allocated it and when. The veil of mist over the program of building houses for those affected by floods in 2010 becomes more and more strong. The number of houses built, their value, and when, to whom and with what means the homes were constructed, remains unclear.

     The flood area has turned into a black hole, which continually draws a great amount of state funds. According to the semi-secret order N197 signed on July 2010, more than 200 million manat have been allocated for the MES to build about 3,500 houses and social facilities. The average cost of a house with an average area of 80-90 square meters was estimated at 63,000 manat (!) The funds have been expended, but the construction was not completed. Thus, on 30 November, 2011 the government allocated another 20 million manat for the construction of 1,440 houses. This time, the price of the housing was more realistic - about 14,000 manat for one farmhouse. On March 29, 2012 the president signed a decree for an additional 50 million manat for the construction of houses and infrastructure. In June 2012, Parliament introduced amendments to the budget, allocating 300 million manat to build homes in the earthquake zone in the northwest region of the country and in the 2010 flood zone. It is still unclear what portion of these funds is to be spent for the flood victims.

      Ten days ago, the Director of Turan news agency, Mehman Aliyev, sent a written enquiry to the MES with a request to answer questions regarding the number of houses built, their value and list of owners. This letter, as with the previous letter of the “Kura” civil society, remains unanswered.

   Headquarters of "Kura" and the National Budget Group, studying the actions of the authorities in the flood zone, concluded there has been general corruption in the implementation of government programs to eliminate damage caused by the flooding of 2010. The need to allocate more funds for the rehabilitation of housing for victims and the lack of cooperation from contractors of the MES should be regarded as reasons for an absence of confidence in this structure in the leadership of the country.—0-