PROPERTY NEWS

WORRIED by the persistent problems associated with the activities of quacks in the building and construction industry, the Lagos chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA), has blamed the development on "the lackadaisical attitudes of government officials towards scrutiny of documents submitted to their offices before approval."

Chairperson of the chapter, Mrs. Abimbola Ajayi, speaking on the recent emphasis on 'Due Process' in the conduct of the state affairs, said the lack of proper scrutiny hinders procedures for implementing different projects, eventually giving room for quacks to operate.

According to Ajayi, the non-compliance with due process by government officials has to do, among others, with the demand for licences from professionals before submission of documents for approval.

The NIA chairperson, reiterating the need for government to adhere strictly to due process in checkmating documents before approval, said: "I think the issue of quackery is currently affecting government activities because of non-compliance with enforcement of due process by not asking for licences from the developers before submitting their documents."

She noted that foreigners have also invaded the building professions in Nigeria, without their licences being certified by the appropriate authorities. "These foreigners are quacks based on the fact that most of them are not duly registered here in Nigeria before practising, and that is unacceptable," she said, noting that if government is able to regulate the activities of these foreign nationals and their local counterparts, the issue of quacks will be reduced to the minimum.

Ajayi noted that the NIA, in its continued efforts address the lingering issues, insists on the provisions of the law, which states that for foreigners to operate in the country, they must do so in partnership with local professionals who are dully registered.

"But the question is, how do they get their approval? They come to our country and flout our laws, which is supposed to be an embarrassment to our governments. Most of them are not legally entering the country, and even if the entered legally, the way they are being allowed to invade our industry is not only degrading, but also has the capacity to kill our profession," she lamented.

Reacting to the issue of incessant building collapse in the country, especially in Lagos, the architects lauded the involvement of building professionals by the state government in efforts to curb the incidents. They however urged wider partnership between the state government and the private sector by forming a consortium to monitor the building process in the state.

"The involvement of building professionals is indeed a laudable development, unlike before when the government demonstrated a lukewarm attitude towards professionals in the private sector by not involving them in the execution of their projects."

However, Ajayi urged architects to always be creative and ensure that they abide by the laid down ethics of the profession, noting that "architects are not building designers alone, but they also affect life, creating an aesthetic and enabling environment. There is need to be creative in the architectural practise, whether in terms of the profession, the institute, the individual, or the society at large.

She said that different incentives have been put in place to assist members of the Lagos State chapter in the practise of the profession. This include the provision of a befitting secretariat, health insurance scheme and wealth creation scheme, "which are set up to compliment the efforts of the members."

The Vice Chairman of the chapter, Mr. Femi Shodunke said "In order to avert future occurrence of building collapse, different monitoring schemes should be put in place to checkmate the rate at which structures are erected. All over the place, there are buildings and different structures being erected without proper approvals."