Weak buildings threaten life

On April 4, a building collapsed in Fenghua, Zhejiang province. Five days later, the deputy chief of construction of the street where the building once stood is said to have committed suicide.

Did the local official (He Gaobo) commit suicide because he was forced to take the blame for accident? It is not known. But if indeed that is the case then He should be seen as a victim of injustice, because grassroots-level officials should not be made scapegoats for such accidents.

The Fenghua building collapse could be the beginning of a wave of such accidents as the "fast food" buildings built in the 1980s and 1990s enter their 30s and 20s. So there is no justification in blaming grassroots officials who have neither the power nor financial resources at their command for such accidents.