GDI: No structural flaw found in Seac Pai Van public housing

By
Kam Leong

The deputy head of the Infrastructure Development Office (GDI) said the Office had not found any structural problems in the Seac Pai Van public housing builfing known as Edifício Koi Nga after it was alleged by the public to have been jerry-built with one of the walls stuffed with ‘paper bag-like’ materials.
In February, a photo of a wall built with ‘paper bag-like’ materials was posted on the Internet, with the claim it was taken in a flat on Seac Pai Van Public Housing estate. The Office responded at the time that ‘it does not eliminate the possibility that the case was due to workers not [being] fully aware of the standard of the construction technology during the construction’.
Replying to legislator Si Ka Lon’s written interpellation querying the quality of the building and the units affected, the GDI head said the Office and Housing Bureau had together inspected a total of 44 units in the building at the beginning of March after the photo was circulated on the Internet.
According to Mr. Chao, the Office found no structural flaws in the building other than flaws primarily related to wall cracking, hollowing and bursting ash. He explained that these problems, again, were due to the construction workers not being cognizant of the standards, and supervision not detailed enough.
In the written reply, the GDI deputy head also claimed that the government has not received any official complaints on the related wall and thus could not verify the truthfulness of the photograh circulated.
He stressed that the inspection had been conducted ‘to dismiss the concerns of the public and ensure the quality of public housing.’
In addition, Mr. Chao said the government would extend its training to construction workers on the crafts and techniques required. He also claimed the government will appoint quality-supervising units – namely, the Civil Engineering Laboratory of Macau (LECM) and the University of Macau – to ensure infrastructure contractors use the materials required in the bids.
K.L.