You cannot wake up one day, buy some equipment, and become a contractor.

This is what Prime Minister Robert Abela said.

We reiterate that warranted professionals are duty-bound to oversee works being done and where they notice a deviation from the standard procedures, techniques and craftsmanship, they should stop the works immediately.

This is what the Malta Developers Association said.

The construction industry cannot keep accepting mediocrity and poor quality. The price being paid is too high.

This is what the Malta Chamber for Construction Management said.

In the meantime, a family is mourning the tragic loss of a young life.

Jean Paul Sofia, 20, died when a building under construction in Kordin collapsed yesterday week. Five workers on site were also injured, with three of them ending up in intensive care. It took a team of 30 members of the Civil Protection 16 hours to retrieve Jean Paul’s body from under the debris. Footage of the collapse that emerged on the social media showed how the building crumbled in seconds, giving him no time to make his escape. The others were lucky to have been found alive.

A magisterial inquiry is underway to establish what caused tonnes of bricks to come tumbling down. One hopes that it will not take too much time, and that once it is concluded, action is taken.

When, less than three years ago, Miriam Pace died when the house she resided in collapsed as construction work was taking place in an adjacent site, it was thought that we had learnt a lesson and that her sacrifice would have brought about changes in the way the system operates.

But it is clear that the lesson has not been learnt. If changes were made, then they are not enough.

In the statements that were given after Jean Paul Sofia died yesterday week, we were told that “much more needs to be done”.

When asked by media about the formal licensing scheme for developers that never materialised, PM Abela replied that the government conducted many reforms and plans on doing more, with Planning Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi responsible for the changes.

The question is: why does it take so long?

The MDA, in its own press release following the Kordin strategy, said it is in discussions with the government so that a “system of certification of contractors is introduced in our country to give more assurance that whoever is working on a construction site has the necessary resources and capability to do this work”.

Again, why is it taking so long to come to an agreement on this?

The Malta Chamber for Construction Management, for its part, said the industry requires professionals who work together. When professionals from different fields come together, this combination of expertise results in higher quality, the chamber said.

So isn’t this already taking place? Are the different factions that form part of the construction industry not aware of what the other sectors are doing?

Let us remember that Jean Paul Sofia and Miriam Pace were not the only victims of a construction industry accident. Over the past years we had others who died in falls or other types of mishaps that took place while they were on a construction site. The deaths of Pace and Sofia led to greater public outrage because of the way they happened, but other families had to bear the loss of loved ones who left home one day and never came back.

While the construction industry is making its hay, innocent people are dying.

And, following what happened in Kordin, concerns have grown about the safety of buildings that have been constructed – all over Malta and Gozo – in these past years.

Was there too much haste? Was the material used appropriate? Are the buildings safe? Are we buying or living in property that is dangerous? Are buyers paying through the nose without knowing that the place where they now live can crumble like biscuits?

The social media, which offers a reflection of what the public at large is thinking, these past few days was replete with these and other questions.

The government, the construction industry and all its stakeholders cannot remain silent in the wake of all that is happening. Over the years the industry has come under fire because of over-development, noise and dust pollution, inconvenience and also fatalities such as the one we had eight days ago.

And yet the authorities have failed to take enough action to limit the danger and make construction sites safer.

We now await developments, and by this we mean tougher laws and, most of all, their enforcement. Because it is useless to enact laws without providing the necessary resources to make sure that those laws are being followed.

There should not be any more Miriam Paces or Jean Paul Sofias.