“The reaction of some government agencies has been a bit of a disappointment, claims a player who happens to be in the construction business.

Last week, another quake hit the southern Philippines, killing at least eight people and injuring dozens of others, reminding both the government and the public of the possibility of the “Big One” that could hit us when we least expect it.

In light of this fresh tremor, the government must really determine which construction and steelmaking technology is most appropriate for the country.

The fears are real, especially for developers of high-rise buildings and the construction industry in the country’s major urban centers.

This is also in the wake of House Bill 379, filed recently by Agusan del Norte Rep. Lemuel H. Fortun to investigate the alleged smuggling and proliferation of substandard construction and steel products in the Philippines.

The reaction of some government agencies has been a bit of a disappointment, claims a player who happens to be in the construction business.

They should have been proactive in looking for real solutions to ensure that no shortcuts are made to ensure the highest safety standards of steel rebars in the country. Instead, these agencies may have seemingly decided to side with one major manufacturer in the war of steel technologies.

The truth is, and as I mentioned, there is currently House Bill 379, now with the House Committee on Trade and Industry. The bill is fueled by concerns of consumer groups, specifically buyers of high-rise condominiums, over the continued selling of substandard steel rebars that may render thousands of high-rise structures unsafe in the event of a high magnitude earthquake.

This inquiry, if it pushes through, should determine which technology best suits what building contractors, developers and end-users in the construction industry must use to ensure the safety and stability of buildings.

As a condominium dweller, I am deeply concerned of the reported proliferation of sub-standard steel bars being used to reinforce high-rises. It makes me wonder if we are really safe every time we enter our condominium, my home over these past many years.

Perhaps it is time to make an honest to goodness assessment of the integrity both of new and old buildings. As government agencies, they must move heaven and earth to ensure the safety of millions of Filipinos who work daily, commute and live in government and private infrastructure built with steel and other construction products.

Recently, the Department of Trade and Industry also said they have pinpointed the proliferation of “induction furnaces” (IF) in the local steelmaking industry, and vowed to ban the use of such “second-hand” technology, which it described as “pollutive, and the source of low-grade steel products.”

The DTI reportedly praised certain leading construction suppliers and steel manufacturers who had invested in a rival “electric arc furnace” technology declaring that this was the better environmentally friendly process.

Both technologies are reportedly suspected of being pollutive, though industry experts claim that properly equipped with the correct pollution control devices, as all manufacturing facilities should be, these technologies are safe.

At the same time, technical data point to the consistent failure of quench tempered (QT) steel in independent structural integrity tests, rendering them dangerously inadequate for building high rise infrastructure.

To date, all seismic zone-located countries, such as China, Japan, Taiwan, New Zealand, Canada and the United States, have reportedly banned QT steel rebars for use in building high rise edifices. The Philippines, located in the middle of the “ring of fire,” or earthquake belt, has been silent.

At the end of the day, the war of what technology is better should prod the industry and government to make an honest to goodness study and assessment instead of simply concluding what is better— and thus, ensure that indeed world class safety standards are met.

The DTI, as the country’s standards protector and number one consumer rights advocate, should conduct its investigation impartially and decide in a transparent manner, which technology would do best for President Duterte’s “Build, Build, Build” program, and inflict the least harm on the greatest number of Filipinos in the event of the “Big One.”

Only then would consumers and condominium dwellers benefit from fair competition, and get the better price for the safest product.