Members of the Iron Rod and Steel Distributors Employers Union of Nigeria (IRSDEUN) have criticised the past government for refusing to assent to bill criminalising substandard products in Nigeria, saying that the refusal has led to several building collapse and loss of lives in Nigeria.
The union, particularly, blamed the immediate past government of President Muhammadu Buhari for not assenting to the bill.
While reacting to the recent building collapse in an Abuja building construction site, which claimed no fewer than 40 lives, the National President of the union, Gbenga Awoyale, noted that lack of stringent criminal punishment for producers of substandard steel and other products is responsible for the continued manufacturing of products that exposed Nigerians’ lives to risk on a daily.
“It is unfortunate that the lackadaisical attitude of former President Buhari’s administration towards tackling substandard production frontally is claiming lives of countless Nigerians and the current administration must take a bold step against substandard steel and other building materials in the interest of Nigerians’ wellbeing.
Awoyale said that government officials or their families may also be victims, adding that owners of buildings had been trapped in many building collapses.
“The legal framework within which the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) is working will remain grossly effective and confined to be abused for personal gains, if there is an element of criminal prosecution against anyone caught in the act of substandard production. Mere fines aren’t enough to safeguard lives and properties. We call on the present administration to live up to this challenge. The National Assembly has deliberated on this matter when raised by Rep. Ahmed Yinka Aluko but we are yet to see implementation of the resolution of the House.
“Recently, the House Committee on Steel Development also waded in to the matter but we are aware the SON hasn’t been forthcoming in providing the details requested on certain steel manufacturers in Nigeria and we begin to wonder whose interest are they serving; is it that of Nigerians whose common patrimony is used in paying them or defiant substandard manufacturers, mostly expatriates who have no regard for the lives of Nigerians?”, he asked.
Awoyale called on the National Assembly to revisit the bill seeking to criminalize substandard steel and other products in Nigeria, urging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to make history by showing personal interest in such a matter to demonstrate his genuine concern for the safety and well-being of Nigerians. The spate of building collapses and consequent loss of lives due to substandard production is unacceptable”.
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