Jeddah municipality, Aramco spar over flood projects

The mayor of Jeddah has sent a letter to Saudi Aramco accusing it of failing to deliver on delayed floodwater drainage projects, which he claimed is not the responsibility of the municipality.
According to media reports, in his letter Hani Abu Ras had responded to alleged claims from Ahmad Saleem, Aramco’s general director of rainwater and floods, that Aramco is only responsible for protecting the city from floods, and not the drainage of rainwater.
The letter comes in the wake of flooded city streets after torrential rainfall two weeks ago, which brought some parts of the city to a standstill. In the aftermath of the rain, there were huge pools of water created in many neighborhoods, raising fears of a dengue fever outbreak.
In the letter, Abu Ras said that Aramco was failing to fulfill its mandate as set out in royal orders. He claimed that Saleem had earlier released a press statement that had implied the municipality was responsible for the rainwater drainage system, even though Saleem did not mention any names.
“The implementation of the projects was delayed, which led to large pools of water, traffic congestion and complaints from people,” said the mayor in his letter. He claimed that he had asked Aramco several times to complete these projects, and even transferred funds into its bank account for this purpose.
“The delays in implementing the projects mean that people will continue to suffer,” said the mayor. He called on Aramco to complete the projects within the stipulated time frame.
Two weeks ago, the municipality had also said that it was not responsible for the flood and rainwater drainage systems, and that Aramco was in charge of doing so.
There had earlier been a video clip posted on social networking sites featuring Abu Ras saying that contracts were signed to implement the projects. In response, the municipality claimed it was recorded four years ago at the opening of the Prince Majid and Rawdah streets intersection.
The municipality said the mayor was responding to several questions at the time, including one on the municipality’s action plan to ward off the flooding of Jeddah’s streets after rain and floods.
It claimed that the mayor had then outlined the conditions and specifications for the projects. “After eight months the royal decree no. 2212/mb dated March 6, 2011 was issued to form a ministerial committee to supervise the projects, while the technical and executive tasks were entrusted to Aramco,” said the municipality’s statement.