Security
THE Oriade Council Development Area (LCDA) in Lagos State on Tuesday alerted that uncompleted buildings around the Trade Fair Complex were posing a security threat to residents.
Mr Abbé Ogunwale, an official of the council’s Physical Development Department, made the assertion during an inspection tour of the area to ascertain compliance of developers to laid down regulations.
Ogunwale, who led the council’s inspection team, said: “Uncompleted buildings that pose a security threat to the area would be pulled down.
“It is unacceptable for one’s investment to constitute a security threat to the rest of the community and be allowed to remain.
“The country is facing a perilous security situation, therefore, any avenue that tends to advance insecurity will be dealt with in order to encourage peace and development.
“Remember that the use of substandard materials in building construction is outlawed and will not be condoled,” he said.
Mr Abuchi Nwachukwu, a Structural Engineer handling one of the estates in Abulado area of the LCDA, said that the cost of materials stalled the completion of the buildings.
Nwachukwu, who spoke on behalf of the house owners, appealed for the government’s intervention to bring down the cost of building materials to enable people to complete their projects.
“Since 2020, building materials such as cement, iron rods and planks which are critical ingredients in construction, have been on a steady rise.
“The rise has altered the projection of developers which made it difficult for them to complete their projects.
“Government can help the situation by reducing or removing import tariff on those materials and set up a price control board to ensure compliance,” Nwachukwu said.
Speaking during the inspection tour, Mr Dada Shobawole, whose house was among those burnt by the 2020 Gas Pipeline explosion in the area, said that some people had yet to reconstruct their buildings due to lack of funds.
He said that if the government could regulate the price of building materials, the subsisting exploitation of the masses by marketers would stop and people would complete their houses in good time.
Also, some developers said that the rise in building materials contributed to the increase in the number of uncompleted buildings that provide hideouts to criminals in the country.
The developers said that a steady rise in the cost of building materials contributed to the unfinished states of the sites. (NAN)
– Mar. 2, 2021 @ 16:25 GMT
Tags: uncompleted buildings; threat to residents - Oriade LCDA
