GÜRCAFER: IN NEW BUILDINGS; THE CLAIMS ‘CRACKED, RISK OF COLLAPSE’ ARE FALSE

“ALL CONSTRUCTIONS MUST BE FIRST STRAINED THROUGH THE FILTER OF SCIENCE”

The earthquake disaster in Türkiye resulted in great sadness as well as raise serious concerns in the TRNC. Cafer Gürcafer, President of the Cyprus Turkish Building Contractors Association (CTBCA), said that there is a lack of control in the country, but there is also a trained, responsive engineer and architect sector. In newly constructed buildings; stating that claims such as “it has cracked, collapsed, there is a danger of collapse” are unfounded, Gürcafer went on to say, “however, we have buildings from before 74, schools, hospitals and public buildings that are not earthquake proof. We need to survey them quickly.” Drawing attention to recent allegations made frequently about the Long Beach region, Gürcafer said, “When these rumours first came out, we sent the Construction Commission and the technical staff of the relevant municipality to the area to make the necessary investigations. The technical team did not come across a situation as claimed. Of course, it is not possible to enter and look inside all the houses, but we reached out to all the real estate agents. In case of complaints from their customers, we asked them to inform us about this issue.”

“URGENT NEED FOR SHELTER”

CTBCA President Cafer Gürcafer also touched upon the issue of aid from the TRNC to Türkiye.

Gürcafer stated that machinery and labour, truckloads of food, blankets and other humanitarian needs, as well as mobile toilets, were sent to the earthquake zones, but besides these, the most urgent need for earthquake victims at the moment is shelter. Stating that they took steps to ensure that the aid provided by the Turkish Cypriots goes to the right place, Gürcafer stated that in this context, the “Turkish Cypriot Solidarity Platform” was established by 42 chambers, unions, federations and associations in Northern Cyprus and that their sleeves were rolled up for the establishment of a prefabricated living space of 1000 houses in the earthquake zone. Cafer Gürcafer also reiterated that the living space to be established in earthquake zones in Türkiye will be named “Cyprus Turkish Champion Angels Village”.

CTBCA President Cafer Gürcafer participated as a guest in the program titled ‘Agenda’, prepared and presented by Ulaş Barış which was broadcast on Kıbrıs Postası TV.

“THE PROJECT HAS 1000 HOUSES BUT THIS NUMBER CAN BE INCREASED BASED ON DONATIONS”

CTBCA President Gürcafer said that 1000 houses were scoped in the “Cyprus Turkish Champion Angels Village” project, but this number may increase depending on the donations collected. Cafer Gürcafer explained the details of the project, which will be brought to life on a collectivist basis: “Right now, tens of thousands of earthquake survivors in Türkiye are either living in the street, as guests with others, or crammed into hotel rooms. The need for shelter is the most urgent need. We also took a step to ensure that the aid of Turkish Cypriots and our members goes to the right place. I think the public has been somewhat misinformed here. When this idea of ours came up, we obtained prices from all of our companies that produced these prefabricated houses. Some said 10 thousand dollars, some 11 thousand dollars, some 13 thousand and some 9 thousand dollars. We started with the best price. The houses to be built in Türkiye are a single type and are 22 square meters in size. The houses we will build are 42 square meters, twice the size of the ones to be built currently, and at least four people can comfortably stay in them. When this campaign begun, it completely turned to a collective effort. The Electrical Contractors Association took an approach such as ‘we do the electrical work and we do not charge any labour related to it’. An avalanche of help arose from our traders of construction materials, such as ‘we’ll give you the toilets, we’ll give you the ceramics’. Companies that sell metal materials have started to donate. Therefore, at the end of the day with these donations, you will see that the item cost of these houses will be 80-90 thousand TL. As much as the money collected, maybe 1300, maybe 1500 houses could be built. At present, the work has started feverishly. We’ll get this done promptly. We aim to deliver the first phase within 10 days.”

“6 ORGANIZATIONS WILL SUPERVISE”

Gürcafer said that duties were shared among the members of the Turkish Cypriot Solidarity Platform, and accordingly, 6 organizations were given the task of supervising this work. Commenting on the public discourse about the cost of 1000 prefabricated houses to be built, Cafer Gürcafer said: “In addition to helping people find the right space, there is another thing that is very important here, which is that Turkish Cypriots can produce and can come together and achieve something in such situations. Now, views such as ‘Let’s buy it from Türkiye, it is cheaper there’ have also emerged. Perhaps it is cheaper in China, maybe even cheaper in Pakistan. This is not the right approach. It is much more expensive in Germany, but Germany also takes into account its own economy. On the one hand, we will help, on the other hand, we need to be ready for a difficult 5 years ahead. At this juncture, it is critical to produce, to be self-sufficient and to create a self-nurturing system. This is the big picture and it needs to be looked at. The small picture is the stuff of populism, and we’ve moved on from that. We have to do whatever we can do with our own strength and resources.”

“ALL BUILDINGSS MUST BE STRAINED THROUGH THE FILTER OF SCIENCE FIRST”

CTBCA President Cafer Gürcafer also made statements about questions and concerns in public on; “If there is an earthquake in the TRNC, what will be our fate?”. Gürcafer said, “There is a lack of control in our country, but we also have a trained, conscientious engineering and architecture sector. Licencing points are of great importance in this respect.  Respect for them must get higher. The supervision of these should be strengthened and it is necessary to all the buildings in this country must be strained through the filter of science first,” he said.  Stating that the government also backed away from this issue, Gürcafer said, “their approach; predicating the projects drawn by the state via licence control, which in my opinion in any case is wrong, as the control system of the state had already collapsed. Therefore, the projects to be undertaken by the state should definitely be included in the licencing process.”

“BUILDING CONTROL ADMINISTRATION SHOULD BE EXPANDED”

Gürcafer noted that every project developed in the TRNC passes through the licence office and that only the projects drawn up by architects and engineers are implemented by contractors. Cafer Gürcafer, who stated that according to the law, the project owner is responsible for the supervision of this, went on to say, “in other words, the engineer has an obligation to conduct the necessary supervision at every stage of that construction. Therefore, if there is a mistake in the on-site implementation of the projects, both the engineer and the architect are responsible.” Gürcafer, as he continued his speech, also drew attention to the importance of building inspection. Cafer Gürcafer said, “CTBCA and Union of Chambers of Turkish Cypriot Engineers and Architects (UCTCEA) have a good dialogue. They are partners, they are colleagues. Building inspection is a system that has been put forward due to our and their efforts and has just begun to be applied. There is a Cabinet decision taken 5-6 years ago regarding this. Unfortunately, this was not implemented by many municipalities. In this regard, it is necessary to thank the Nicosia Turkish Municipality (NTM). NTM is our municipality, which started this pilot implementation first, took ownership of it, and contributed greatly to its dissemination.

This work was introduced in the Famagusta Municipality during the period of Mr. İsmail Arter, and now İskele Municipality has started it too. We need to expand building controls in all other municipalities,” he said.

“BUILDINGS SHOULD BE SURVEYED FAST”

Noting that the TRNC was also shaken by the intensity of the earthquake in Türkiye, the intensity of what was felt in Cyprus was at level 4, Cafer Gürcafer stated that the buildings should be scanned. Noting that there are a lot of rumours in the public and that there is a great deal of misinformation about this issue, Cafer Gürcafer said: “When these rumours first came out, we sent the Construction Commission and the technical staff of the municipality to the Long Beach area. Of course, it is not possible to enter and inspect all the houses, but we reached out to all the real estate agents. We said, ‘If there are complaints from customers, inform us about it’. The technical staff of the Construction Commission, the architect, the engineers as well as the technical staff of the municipality did not come across the claimed situation. The buildings made by large companies were visited especially and nothing like it was encountered. If there is such a thing, of course, it should be examined. It is necessary to determine whether it is a crack in the separators (brick or drywall) or a crack in the load bearers (column). In the TRNC, we have schools, hospitals and public buildings that are not earthquake resistant. We need to survey them quickly. In this context, schools that need to be evacuated should be evacuated immediately. For those who can be reinforced, we need to develop projects to retrofit them and issue tenders straight away. We need to demolish buildings that cannot be reinforced and build new ones instead. In short, we need to direct all our energies to take precautions against earthquakes. Maybe we need to transform our economy into an economy that feeds on this and create a movement.”

“MY PRIORITY IS NOT THE MOSQUE OR THE ROAD. IT IS NOT KNOWN WHEN THE EARTHQUAKE WILL KNOCK ON OUR DOOR”

CTBCA President Cafer Gürcafer underlined that we are going through a very dangerous process and said, “Today, there is no need for me to build a mosque or a road urgently. Let my car go rattling on our roads for a little bit more. Whereas, investments in this regard are investments related to human life. Gürcafer, who stated that a centre comprising stakeholders and science should be established, said; “We need to form this centre under the umbrella of the Prime Ministry, ensure the best use of the time and furnish that centre with authority. That centre should have the authority on the actions to be taken and the steps to be implemented. This can be done with the decision of the Council of Ministers.” “It is not clear when the earthquake will knock on our door, we must not be late!” Gürcafer warned, however, that compared to the scenes in Adıyaman or Hatay, if such a thing occurs in the TRNC, a similar destruction would not take place. Gürcafer said, “In that, if we are to put a ratio among our architects, engineers and owners, there is a 90 percent segment of which is decent. If you do not inspect, there will be people who will steal with malicious intent, but this is a bit related to education and culture as well. Our country also has that culture. Nevertheless, there are buildings from before 74. It is necessary to review the high-rise buildings which has concrete with expired life-cycle and we need to carry out earthquake surveys.

Cafer Gürcafer noted that it is necessary to begin the work without delay by establishing some rules for the screening of all buildings, but primarily the schools, hospitals and public buildings, and continued his speech: “The building can be saved. Reinforcement project gets done, calculations made according to earthquake regulations and the building can be strengthened. If this is not possible then it is demolished and another is built. There, with matters that the state will bring forward and the rights it will issue, the cost can be reduced considerably and that building can be reconstructed. It is possible to start work without delay by setting some rules for surveying all buildings, primarily the schools, hospitals and public buildings. We have this capacity. We have several thousand engineers and architects in our country. 50 teams can be established in coordination with UCTCEA. We can set up 10 teams per region. We can do these surveys quickly. We will only tread water in this confusion and mess. We need to start working from a centre without listening to the gossip.”

“CLAIMS OF CRACKED AND UNAUTHORIZED BUILDINGS IN İSKELE ARE FALSE”

Cafer Gürcafer also warned that most news and gossip should be disregarded. Gürcafer said, “Currently, apart from the buildings I mentioned above, news such as ‘cracked, collapsing, there is a danger of collapse’ in newly constructed buildings are false. They should be disregarded. There are photos taken, there are some confidential information. So far, we have not been able to find the accuracy of these. But there are aged or old buildings that are in danger,” he said. CTBCA President Cafer Gürcafer also drew attention to the allegations that have been made for the Long Beach region in recent days. Explaining that there is a pile foundation system in the Long Beach region, Cafer Gürcafer said, “Since the ground is soft, they dig 30-40 meters down to the bedrock, build foundations that step on the bedrock and construct the buildings on those foundations. These are the projects drawn by the Chamber of Civil Engineers (CTCCE) in accordance with the requirements. Project owners have a responsibility here,” he said. Cafer Gürcafer added; “There are 4-5 disciplines in building inspection. There is a survey engineer who ensures that there is no border violation in the setting of the building. There are civil engineers, architects, contractors and owners. Everyone signs up on their responsibility each month. This control mechanism needs to be expanded. These stakeholders have been scrambling for years to get this done. Now, due to this misfortune, this cautionary tale, all municipalities have entered the race to implement it. For example, it was not applied in Gönyeli. Mr. Ahmet Benli was refusing to implement this. As soon as Mr. Hüseyin Amcaoğlu took office, he said that they wanted to make building inspections and the implementation begun. It is the same in İskele. Famagusta Municipality needs to develop a little more. This is not something that will burden the State anyway. You allow for a system of control without a need to fund it.

“THE ONE WHO BUILDS CANNOT DRAW, WHO DRAWS CANNOT BUILD. WHO DRAWS CANNOT CONTROL, THE ONE WHO CONTROLS CANNOT DRAW”

Here, the one who draws, builds and controls is very important. It is science that draws. In other words, it is the civil engineer, the architect, the mechanical engineer. These are people who have received academic training for this job. It should also be teams of them that control. The Contractor… It is the same with our law. I am a contractor, but I cannot work as a contractor unless I employ architects and engineers in my own company, unless I appoint them as a manager. Therefore, the one who draws will not be able to build, and the one who builds will not be able to draw. Those who draw will not be able to control, those who control will not be able to draw. It’s what we call the separation of controls. This is both economic planning and tax revenue for the state. The state sits at the top of the process, checks whether the system works correctly, whether people comply with their responsibilities, and imposes penal sanctions. In fact, it is necessary to bed in the system. There has been work done on how this system would be by the CTCCE, UCTCEA and other relevant chambers. Legislative-executive is missing. I am very sorry, but the legislature-executive did not care about these for years. Their own predicaments came before us. Therefore, these measure were not brought to life. But this is not the time to blame someone. It is time to learn from them and correct them. Civil society organizations know what needs to be done. The legislature will join hands with us and we will do it all.”

“I WILL RESPOND IF MY SECTOR IS BEING SMEARED WITH FAKE NEWS”

Gürcafer said, “Now is not the time for polemics, it is the time to find solutions to problems and to be united,” but said that he would not remain silent if an attempt was made to smear his industry with fake news. Cafer Gürcafer, who said that he never advocated for Kyrenia to become such high-rise, said, “Kyrenia should not have been more than 3 floors. In Kyrenia, the city planners have signed both the 10 floors and the reduction to 8 floors in the decree. I did not sign. They signed. The contractor is the company that produces housing within the framework of the rules. Why don’t I build multi-storey buildings in Tatlısu or Esentepe? It’s being manipulated. ‘The contractors went, they put pressure on the politicians, they constructed their buildings with as many floors as they wanted, wherever they wanted’; the perception of them doing this is being created. The first mistake was made in land reform. This plan should have been made while the land was being distributed. There are two zoning plans in İskele and the difference between them is not 2 percent. But it’s all about a ‘no, I will have my way’ situation. A perception is being created that if there is a change in the zoning plan, if there is an earthquake in our country, all buildings would need to be demolished. It is being manipulated,” he said.

“IN OUR COUNTRY, THERE CAN BE NO SUCH THING AS A ZONING AMNESTY”

Noting that an attempt is made to correlate the destruction in the earthquake with the change in the zoning plan, Cafer Gürcafer said, “The zoning amnesty is not the right approach. Globally, it has only been formulated in Türkiye and for purposes of political profit. It is being used for this purpose. There is no zoning amnesty in our country. An order was made regarding illegal floors in Kyrenia. I was the one who said that the Kaya Artemis Hotel built in Kyrenia should be demolished. I pursued it to the end. There can be no such thing as a zoning amnesty in our country,” he said.