Building collapse: Stakeholders applaud new move by Lagos

• It will check quackery, address capacity issues, says LASBCA boss
Stakeholders in the built environment have extolled recent move by the Lagos State government to curb building collapses in the state.

The state recently announced the commencement of its Certified Accreditors’ Programme (CAP), which allows private sector synergy in monitoring defective buildings and structures.

The Guardian learnt that the move is aimed at leveraging the expertise of private sector professionals to accelerate the effectiveness of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LABSCA) towards optimum service delivery. This is with a view to actualising its mandate of ensuring that all new and existing buildings are fit for habitation.

Under the programme, the professionals will complement government’s effort in supervision and monitoring, thereby bridging capacity gap in the agency.

Pioneer president of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG) and a former President of the Nigerian Institute of Builders (NIOB), Kunle Awobodu, said the programme is long overdue as had been a part of past recommendations.

He said: “This is what we have been advocating for years but it was resisted because some government officials felt it would render them irrelevant. The 2019 physical planning and development laws also recommended public private partnership but it was not welcomed. We are excited about it. The idea was there years ago but it has never come to fruition. We just hope it will work out well.”

Also, the president of Nigerian Institution of Structural Engineers (NIStructE), Johnson Adegboyega Adeyoye, applauded the initiative, saying it has the capacity to address incessant building collapses in the state. He, however, questioned the high cost of the form.

The General Manager of LASBCA, Gbolahan Owodunni Oki, explained that the consultants will act as Certified Accreditors to complement the activities of government officials in screening of drawings, stage inspections and monitoring activities.

He disclosed that the programme is in line with the policy of the state government to make Lagos sustainable, resilient and attractive to businesses through physical planning and urban development.

He said: “What we are talking about is synergy between professionals and government. The Lagos State building control has professionals but lacks capacity. Just about 20-30 per cent of the construction in Lagos has approval, which means we have 70-80 per cent of houses that do not have approval.”

What the government is saying is: let private people partner in building control to solve the problem of quacks coming into construction.”