Building Collapse in Nigeria in The Past Ten Years in Lagos state Have Assumed a Very Worrisome Dimension as Many Lives are Lost and Huge Investments Wasted

The spates of building collapse in Nigeria in the past ten years in Lagos state have assumed a very worrisome dimension as many lives are lost and huge investments wasted. Our condolences to the affected families who lost family members to the recent Lagos Island  building  collapses

The Lagos state  chairman for Liberation Movement Party LM Hon. Rahman Adebiyi Lamented that several causes of building failure had been attributed to either natural or man-made phenomena, in Nigeria surveys carried out have shown that the use of substandard building materials; poor workmanship, the use of quacks instead of professionals, non-enforcement of building codes or construction regulations, corruption in the building industry etc. have contributed immensely in most of the recorded cases of building failures.

Consequently, these often results to building collapse which has adverse effect on both people and investments in the building industry. In the year 2014 over one hundred and twenty deaths related to building collapse was recorded in Lagos. Similar stories goes for cities like Port-Harcourt, and Abuja. Empirical data suggested huge loss of investments in areas with cases of building collapse in Nigeria. Rahman Adebiyi   provides relevant information on the state of the nation in respect of the incidences of building collapse and the tendency for the situation to persist if adequate measures are not urgently taken.

 In his words the LM state chairman  ’The spate of building collapse in the past years is a re-awakening to the fact that both the government and the people need to collaborate more than ever not only to stem the collapse but also to ensure that people building houses obey the physical planning laws of the state. This is attainable when government and its people work together and build right,” Adebiyi stressed.

Meanwhile there was a little drama at the Lagos State General Hospital as families of victims of the collapsed building protested over what they described as inhuman treatment from the hospital management. He however recommended that to curb or eradicate the incidences of building collapse, all the stakeholders in the construction industry should adhere strictly to the provisions of the building code, the SON (Standard Organization of Nigeria) should ensure that only certified building materials are allowed in the market.
Similarly, government should put in place machinery for strict monitoring of construction sites by enforcing relevant laws to sanitize the building industry.