Sharjah: Al Nasser Tower tenants, who have been left homeless after the high-rise building was burnt in a massive fire on October 1, on Tuesday said they have received no help from the building management, even as the landlord’s representative pledged to offer accommodation.
According to a senior Sharjah Civil Defence official, a lawyer of the landlord of Al Nasser Tower assured provision of accommodation to all the affected families until the maintenance work is completed.
“We held a meeting with the lawyer representing the management of Al Nasser Tower and he pledged to solve the problems faced by the tenants,” said Brigadier Abdullah Al Suwaidi, director-general of Sharjah Civil Defence.
Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) had put up 155 families in 12 hotels but on Monday they were asked to vacate the accommodation.
According to Brig Al Suwaidi, the lawyer has told the ERC to take the tenants back to the same hotels, promising that the building management will pay for all the expenses incurred.
Meanwhile, the Civil Defence has offered the building management a window of one week to repair the building. “We have given them one week’s time to finish the maintenance work. The management will sign a contract in less than 24 hours with a maintenance company approved by us to carry out the maintenance work,” added Brig Al Suwaidi.
Khamis Al Suwaidi, director-general of Emirates Red Crescent in Sharjah, told Gulf News that they have lists containing the names of the affected families and they will contact the families who have left the hotels and ask them to come back.
However, several tenants whom Gulf News contacted on Tuesday said they haven’t received any information about accommodation.
“I don’t understand what maintenance they will do to my apartment. My flat is totally gutted and I don’t think it can be repaired in a few days. It will take them months to bring it back to the original state. I don’t know where I will stay till then. Will they pay for my accommodation till then?” Adel Firoz said.
He added that he hasn’t received any information either from the landlord or the ERC about any decision on accommodation.
“We were asked to vacate the ERC-provided accommodation on Monday and since then I am living with a cousin. I am not aware of any decision by the landlord to provide accommodation until our apartments are fixed,” he said.
He added: “I have already paid my rent for the next three months as the cheque was encashed last month and two more of my cheques are with the landlord. I want the landlord to reimburse my rent and return the cheques so that I can pay for another flat.
“All my belongings, including important documents like degree certificates and passports, were burnt in the fire. For the last few days I have been running between the police station and the court to seek a report of the fire, which I need to apply for fresh documents at the embassy, but nobody is helping me,” said Firoz.
Another resident, Saleem Ahmad, also said he has no information about any accommodation being provided by the building management.
“I am staying with my family in a furnished apartment at my own expense since we were asked to vacate the accommodation provided by ERC. We are not aware of any help being provided by the building management,” said Ahmed.
He alleged that far from providing accommodation, the building management has been very uncooperative.
“I have been running around daily, seeking information or looking to salvage my belongings but the building management is not cooperating. All the stuff in my apartment has been destroyed by the fire, except for kitchen appliances. Since my contract has expired I wanted to move the stuff out of the apartment but the representative of the management didn’t allow us,” said Ahmad, who lived on the seventh floor of Al Nasser Tower for three years.
Frustrated by the lack of cooperation, Ahmad has filed a complaint with Sharjah Prosecution and he has been asked to appear before the judge after five days.
Ahmad has also lost all his important documents, including passport, degree certificates, birth certificates as well as valuables such as jewellery and electronic gadgets.
