The country fell ‘silent’ on Thursday as all demolition and excavation work ceased for a few hours while the victim of the latest house collapse was being laid to rest.

But the token gesture meant nothing much for the husband and children of Miriam Pace, and for the thousands of people who are living next to Malta’s dreaded construction sites.

Following this week’s tragedy which, unlike other cases before it has claimed a life, social media was inundated with photos of other precarious-looking construction sites, some of which have prompted the evacuation of neighbours.

This is the exact same thing that happened last year after the collapses at Pietà, Mellieћa and Guardamangia – so what has the 2019 construction reform achieved exactly?

The answer is: nothing.

Last year, the government had given us the impression that it was taking the situation seriously and that the laws were being reformed to ensure that no more people would lose their homes and possessions. Yet, several months down the line, people who have lost their homes as a result of shoddy excavation work are still begging to be given a new residence - to start their lives afresh.

Much has been said about helping these unfortunate people who have lost their homes at no fault of their own, but these residents have had to rope in the Prime Minister to try and find a solution. That the Prime Minister himself has met with the residents and is trying to mediate a solution is a positive thing, but it is also a clear indication of how our systems have failed. It is also an indication of how this country has bowed down to the pressure of developers and has catered for their greed, but has done zilch to safeguard the lives and rights of homeowners.

PM Robert Abela has now appointed a new technical committee to take stock of the construction industry and make recommendations to help create a stronger regulatory framework.

But this in itself shows the failure of the committee set up by the previous administration to deal with exactly the same problem. The fact that none of the members who drafted the new laws in 2019 are on this new committee also goes to show that the regulations drawn up then have failed.

Some have said that what happened this week is not the fault of those who drafted the 2019 construction laws, but rather the fault of a lack of enforcement by the authorities. In reality, however, new laws and enforcement go hand in hand.

Who, in their right minds, would put their name to a law that will clearly not be followed up, and which places the onus of responsibility on those who might choose to cut corners?

It is clear that, when the regulations were drafted, no particular authority was tasked with enforcing them.

The Building Regulations Office, for example, does not take responsibility for the contents of the method statement submitted by architects. The Building Construction Agency has also said that it does not go into the merits of the actual methods used on site. Furthermore, the Planning Authority said that the method used to excavate a site, the safety of third-party property, and all other issues related to the construction site, fall outside its remit.

So we have a situation where the industry has been allowed to regulate itself.

Now, we know for a fact that there are many diligent architects, contractors and Site Technical Officers who perform their work diligently and who often refuse to take on certain projects out of principle or concern that others on the team will not live up to the same standards. Unfortunately, however, not all people in the field hold themselves to such standards, and haste, greed and a thirst for money often get in the way.

Because such people will always exist in every sector of society, sensitive industries like construction need to be watched over constantly.

Perhaps the Chamber of Architects could have a bigger role in all of this, and be given more powers to revoke the warrants of those members whose lack of attention could cost life and limb.

We understand that enforcement requires manpower, but only the rigorous observation of regulations and sanctions against those who put people’s lives at risk will give us the peace of mind that we so desperately need.

This is what the next round of construction regulations should be about.

Furthermore, the usual mentality of ‘passing the buck’ when tragedy strikes has to stop once and for all. Responsibility has to be shouldered by those who designed a flawed system, and by those who commissioned and approved it.

Shirking blame and pointing our fingers at others will achieve absolutely nothing – it will not bring Miriam back and it will certainly not ensure that other families are not hit by another tragedy.