PROPERTY ARTICLES

Apparently worried by the alarming increase in building collapse across the country in recent times, the Federal Government has set up a panel of enquiry to look into the causes of collapsed buildings and recommend appropriate sanctions against those found culpable.

The panel, drawn from experts in the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, is headed by the Director of Building in the Ministry, Mr. Ali Fatoma. Other members of the panel include the Director, Architectural Services, Alhjai Sanni Gidado, and Assistant Director, Structure, Mr. Paul Ekwelibe.

It was reliably gathered that the panel had already completed preliminary investigations into the cause of the collapse of a three-storey building, which two weeks ago in Edo State, in which two persons reportedly lost their lives. The building is located at Prison Road, Auchi, in Estsako West Local Government Area.

The Director of Building, Federal Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ali Fatoma, who confirmed the development said the collapsed building did not have approved plan from the authorities .

He further noted that the building was built not according to the standards required in building construction.

Fatoma said, "From the investigations we carried out, we discovered that the building design was not done according to specification and that some of the reinforcement used were undersized. Also, the mix of the concrete was not properly done.

"We will submit the report of our investigation to the minister for appropriate action. But before we do that, we shall invite the owner of the collapsed building and find out how many professionals that he engaged in the project, whether the professionals were registered or not.

"From there, we will know what line of action to take. For instance, if an architect is involved, we know they have a regulatory body, if a builder was involved, we also know they have a regulatory body and if an engineer or quantity surveyor was involved, we know their respective professional bodies as well.

"The same thing applies to all other professionals. Those that are found guilty will be sanctioned according to the National Building Code".

When contacted, The Area Planning Officer, Etsako West Local Government, Edo State, Mathew Egualeonam, also confirmed that the collapsed building lacked approval.

He said, "The building plan was not approved by the Local Government. The owner of the building brought a building plan to us which showed that he wanted to build one storey building.

"But before we could look at his building plan and give the necessary approval, he had already started building the three-storey building which eventually collapsed."

The Chairman, Edo State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Building, Mr. Jonathan Iruobe, said that professional builders did not take part in the construction of the collapsed building.

He said "It is a very terrible situation. From what we have seen on ground, the building professionals were not used."

The Federal Government, last week, said that it would deal decisively with property developers who fail to abide by the provisions of the National Building Code.

The Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Nduese Essien, who gave the warning in Abuja, said that the government would no longer fold its hands while innocent Nigerians lose their lives as a result of the activities of unscrupulous property developers.

As part of efforts to address the problem, he stressed that he had summoned all the heads of professional and regulatory bodies within the housing sector to an emergency meeting to find a lasting solution to the problem.

He said, "The incessant collapse of buildings in the country, which has brought untold hardship to many Nigerians, is a sad reminder that our property developers are yet to comply with the rules in the country. The collapse of a private building in Auchi, Edo State, in which some Nigerians lost their lives, cannot be allowed to go the similar cases in the past.

"While we sympathise with the victims of the accident, I want to warn that the Federal Government will no longer tolerate a situation where property developers violate the provisions of the National Building Code in the construction of structures in the country. It is worrisome that rarely a month passes without one or two mishaps occurring in the nation‘s building industry. We can no longer watch as evil contractors and developers continue to defy existing laws in the nation‘s building sector.

"We will ensure that henceforth, property developers adhere strictly with the provisions of the National Building Code and other existing regulations in the building and housing sector of our national economy. As part of the moves to check this trend, I have invited leaders of all professional associations and regulatory bodies within the construction sector to a consultative meeting within the next two weeks.

"The meeting will consider available legislation in the sector and how they could be strengthened to curb sharp practices among practitioners, quack engineers, architects and builders.

We will ensure that henceforth property, developers adhere strictly with the provisions of the National Building Code and other existing regulations in the building and housing sector of our economy"