The Lagos State Building Control Agency says it is strengthening its whistle-blowing mechanisms on buildings with structural defects as part of measures to check incessant building collapses.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that LASBCA also noted it identified and published details of over 435 defective buildings with structural issues in 2023.
The Director, Public Affairs, LASBCA, Olusegun Olaoye, on Tuesday, said publishing the list of defective buildings in national dailies was to enlighten the building public and encourage occupants to vacate.
Olaoye was reacting to the trend of building collapse and steps taken by the government to improve urban planning and development control in the state.
He said, “First, we look at the causes of building collapse which we have identified to include but not limited to the use of non-professionals and quacks in the building and construction industries; use of sub-standard materials, non-adherence to building codes, old age of structures, among others.
“To effectively curb the menace of building collapse, the state government, through the state building control agency, has strengthened its monitoring department to effectively monitor building construction in the state to ensure that standard materials are used by the building public.”
He added, “We are also strengthening our whistle-blowing mechanism to report buildings with structural defects and buildings constructed without requisite permits.”
The Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Electronic Geographic Information System and Urban Development, Dr Olajide Babatunde, had on Tuesday said that 90 per cent of buildings in Lagos had no approval.
On Monday, obtained documents served to some residents in the Egbeda area of Lagos stating that the owners of some properties in the area had contravened urban and regional planning law of the state.
The Contravention Notice, the residents noted, was served by the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority, asking the residents to bring documents to support their position if they disagreed with the notice.
The notice further threatened demolition if the property owners failed to comply with the state’s directives.