Inadequate preparations for public construction were the focus yesterday as the Control Yuan held its annual inspection of the Executive Yuan in Taipei.
Control Yuan President Chen Chu (陳菊) led her fellow members at a meeting at the Executive Yuan to report on the findings of their inspection.
Control Yuan member Lin Sheng-fong (林盛豐) voiced concern over the quality and quality control of public construction on behalf of the Control Yuan’s Committee on Transportation and Procurement Affairs.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan lacks consistent policy goals, as they tend to change with the rotation of political parties in power, Lin said.
The planning of huge public construction projects often lacks complete preparation, which might lead to repeated planning changes, increased budgets and construction delays, he said.
Contracts for public construction projects are far lower than market prices, he said.
The median price of government projects in Taipei was 40th among global cities in 2017, Lin said, citing data from a Netherlands-based consulting firm.
Construction companies that take contracts can only afford small and medium-sized subcontractors, which are generally less professional, which might affect a project’s quality, he said.
As the rights and duties of architects and construction companies are not clearly defined, architects often spent a long time supervising construction, which is inefficient, he said.
Construction quality inspections are a “mere formality,” Lin said.
Plans to implement a program for fulltime safety inspectors has not produced results, as safety experts often work for at least two companies a year, he added.
On average, 146 companies have been sanctioned every year for the past five years because they borrowed construction enterprise registration certificates to bid for public projects, a practice that is banned, he said.
Public Construction Commission member Wu Tze-cheng (吳澤成) said that the committee has drawn up general regulations and manuals regarding the preparation of public construction projects.
The committee has proposed adjustments to contract prices and has submitted its ideas to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS), Wu said.
It has urged authorities to provide on-the-job training mechanisms for construction workers and would fully implement regulations regarding construction quality inspections, he said.
Acting Minister of the Interior Hua Ching-chun (花敬群) said that the ministry would continue to improve on-the-job training of architects and construction workers, as well as prevent companies from tendering using borrowed certificates.
DGBAS Minister Chu Tzer-ming (朱澤民) said that the budget for general building construction is to increase by 23 to 33 percent next year, and might be further adjusted according to market prices.
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