Nigerian minister asks builders to construct better after spate of collapsing buildings

Nigeria is concerned after a spate of collapsing buildings, which a government minister blamed on a lack of commitment to quality by some builders.

In 2014, some 84 South Africans were killed during one of these collapses, at a church in Lagos run by prominent pastor TB Joshua. The pastor denied any wrongdoing. A lengthy international spat followed over the repatriation of the bodies.

Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola raised concern following a meeting with members of the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria (Corbon) in Abuja.

“The cases of building failures and collapse in Nigeria are a clear manifestation of failings of the designs and the construction processes,” Fashola said at the fifteenth Induction/Investiture ceremony of Corbon.

“The onus lies with the critical stakeholders to undertake a conscientious overhaul of the present system to curb the menace.”

Fashola urged the organisation to develop for implementation, effective strategies, frameworks and benchmarks for ensuring the proper application of the project quality management plan of building projects in Nigeria.

He said this would guarantee the attainment of quality in project delivery as well as regulate and control the practice of the building profession.

The minister added that government was determined to ensure the enactment of legislation on the National Building Code.

Corbon chairperson Professor Bala Kabir said the council had the primary responsibility of establishing and implementing standards of education and practice for building technology provided in the Builders Registration Act.

Last December, a church building collapsed in Uyo killing 60 people, two years after the collapse that killed the South Africans.