Lagos govt decries low patronage of property owners for C of O

Lagos State Government on Monday frowned at the nonchalant attitude of property owners in the state towards applying for a Certificate of Occupancy on their properties, stressing that obtaining a C of O is a good way to secure their property.

This was just as it revealed that it would soon embark on an enforcement exercise to ensure houses without certificates of completion, fitness, and habitation in the state were sealed.

Special Adviser to the State Governor on Enterprise Geographic Information System (e-GIS) and Urban Planning, Dr Olajide Babatunde, stated this during a press briefing held at Alausa to mark the second year of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term.

Babatunde noted that only 246 C of Os had been applied for in the last six years, while 649 applications were filed for regularisation of C of Os.

Besides, he disclosed that 4,690 surveys had been applied for in the last six years, stressing that people would show more interest in obtaining a C of O if they understood its importance, as, according to him, acquiring it is a better way to secure their property.

Speaking on the activities of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), an agency under his ministry, Babatunde noted that 8,663 infractions had been detected on the part of building owners and developers in the state in the last year, while a total of 1,136 Authorisations to Commence Construction were issued within the same period.

The governor’s aide added that 2,232 stage inspections were carried out on buildings under construction for compliance and conformity checks by the Inspectorate and Quality Control Department (I&QC), while 215 Certificates of Completion and Fitness for Habitation were issued to building owners and developers after stage-by-stage inspections processed by LASBCA through its Building Certification Department (BCD).

He further disclosed that a total of 159 buildings had been identified with verified Building Insurance Policies by the agency’s insurance department, adding that 3,610 enforcement activities had been carried out by the enforcement unit of LASBCA.

Babatunde, while announcing the upcoming enforcement exercise to seal houses without certificates of completion, fitness, and habitation in the state, revealed that 349 distressed properties were demolished in 2023, while the state government took over 39 properties that collapsed between 2023 and the present date.

According to him, the takeover of such properties is intended as a temporary punitive measure for their owners, adding that owners of these properties had appealed to the state government for their release through the government’s appeal agency.

He, however, stated that before the government could release such properties, they would be valued, with each owner expected to pay 60 per cent of the cost to reclaim ownership.

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