Institutional process error responsible for collapse of buildings in Lagos —Experts

Cases of project failure, especially, collapse of buildings, are no longer news in Nigeria, as hardly a month passes without such occurence.

Among all the states in the federation, Lagos is notoriously known as a city where incidence of building collapse has become a rule rather than exception, and because of this concern, stakeholders in the building industry, last week, gathered to examine what are the causes and the probable solutions to the menace.

The meeting was at the 2017 Builders’ Conference/Annual General Meeting, organised by the Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB), held at Academy Inn, Agidingbi, Lagos, where attention was focused on the roles of regulatory authorities,  whose performances and activities were considered less than satisfactory.

Speaking on the way forward to stem the tide of building failures, the President of the Institute, Kenneth N. Nduka, while commenting on the “gains” and “pains” the body had recorded so far in the past 50 years, noted that it had identified certain institutional process errors  as one of the major causes of building collapse in Nigeria, especially, Lagos State.

These institutional process failures, according to Nduka, include the attitude of governments at all levels, who are allegedly hesitant towards statutorily anchoring the enabling environment for builders to freely discharge their professional responsibilities.

“The fact that government has not found it necessary to effectively regulate the activities during construction proper, but rather, concentrate on regulating the pre and post construction activities constitutes one of the pains of the Institute.

“I want to use the opportunity of this gathering to re-echo the position of NIOB that since the unregulated paradigms of construction processes provide the fertile ground for the activities of quacks and the concomitant risk exposure they precipitate, some soul searching has become inevitable”.

He added that the ever-changing technological, economic, socio-cultural, legal and environmental scenario, seem also to precipitate, among others, the urgent need to situate building profession as a unique specialisation capable of addressing the basic need-satisfying expectations of man in such areas as convenience, aesthetics, comfortability, durability, affordability, safety, structural integrity, “including functionality and economics’, said the NIOB Chief.

Earlier in his address, Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Wasiu Anifowoshe, a Town Planner, who was also the chairman of the occasion, while commending the unique roles of the builders in the national development, urged all stakeholders in the built environment to join hands together for the purpose of actualising the noble goal of adequate shelter provision for all and sundry.

According to Anifowoshe, it’s time for collaboration between the government and the various professional bodies, especially, town planners and builders to ensure that each of them play their roles in a complimentary fashion for the growth of the profession on one hand, and to ensure the sustenance of government goals of providing enabling environment for the practioners and to fulfill it’s statutory responsibilities.

The Commissioner emphasised the specific roles played by each bodies, noting that for example, as a town planner, it’s the work of surveyor that would determine where the planner will work. Similarly, architect will work based on the work of a planner, while builders will actualise whatever the architect may put on ground.

“So, we need each other and we must ensure that we adhere to the regulatory authorities in the discharge of their duties”, he said.

The chairman of the chapter, Mrs Adenike Said, also a builder, stated the her chapter is committed to creating awareness activity on the role of builders in the construction sector and the regulatory agencies in project delivery, not only in Lagos, but across the federation..

According to her, the theme of the event dwelt on the role of regulatory authorities, in view of the fact that many developers are oblivious of the distinct role of different agencies that monitors building construction in Lagos State.

“With lamentation of double deal I today”s discussions, the professionals and developers be able to advise their clients on which agency to be contacted before, during and after project delivery.

“Is it Land Bureau, the Ministry for Physical Planning and Urban Development, ot it’s agencies such as the building control authority, the urban renewal development authority, or any other relevant ones”, said the Chairman, noting that it’s high time to get things right in the building industry.