Yup, like I said, shoddy mason work. Not made by professionals. Perhaps not secure in an earthquake or anything. But, it's a covering, that's why they can get away with such incompetence. It still won't fall easily. I know people who live in worse self-made homes constructed 30 years ago, and those houses are still standing.

EDIT: and forgot to mention that straight laying is a legitimate bricklaying pattern, it's usually for decorative reasons, so that's not what they were going for here. Apparently in English it's called stack bond.