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By Maduka Nweke
A Coalition against Corruption and Bad Governance (CACOBAG) has complain about what it calls maltreatment meted to property owners in Lagos State. In its latest Save Our Soul (SOS) letter sent to the Governor of Lagos State Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, CACOBAG decried the system of punishing property owners instead of Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) which is the real culprit when building instructions are flouted.
In a statement made available to Daily Sun, CACOBAG Chairman, Mr. Toyin Raheem, said corruption, no doubt has become a monster affecting every facet of the lives of Nigerians. He said that its corrosive effects on the country cannot be overemphasized, noting that the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, despite its flaws is unambiguous when it declares in Section 15 sub section 5, “the state shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of office”.
“United Nations Convention against corruption frowns at betrayal of public trust. To what should we ascribe mortgaging the lives of Nigerians for money? Besides food and water, the most important basic need of life is shelter. This makes it a welcome development that gladdens the minds of people that agencies, organisations and societies are working on this basic need of life.
“There are Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Nigerian Institute of Building, Shelter Rights Project and others. It is sad and an irony that agencies of Government which people rely on are actually the ones mortgaging the lives of Nigerians due to lackadaisical attitudes and corruption.
“It is in this regard that CACOBAG has to write this open letter to you, our governor in order to prevent further collapse of buildings which, in most cases, sent promising Nigerians to early grave. CACOBAG is saddened that in respect of buildings that are being demolished in Lagos State, it is the building owners and tenants alone that are being punished, leaving the compromised officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) to enjoy the proceeds of their crime.
“Law and order are sacrosanct in organised societies. Building plan approval is a prerequisite for building construction. The Urban and Regional Planning Development Law 2010 that established LASBCA empowers its staff to monitor the environment and ensure that buildings under construction have approved building plans and do not deviate from the approved designs.
“For effective monitoring, Lagos State was divided into districts with LASBCA Officials covering specific locations. Under this apportioned surveillance, it is virtually impossible for any building development in any part of Lagos State to escape the monitoring human radar in the LASBCA officials. That is why many buildings are marked in red X.
“Whenever contraventions are discovered in a building construction, a stop work order is applied. This is legally binding. Disobedience could lead to sealing of such a building site. The LASBCA enforcement team ensures no construction work proceeds. Recalcitrant building owners or developers could even be arrested.
“With this system in place, one wonders how buildings without approval would have been successfully developed beyond foundation or, at most, lintel level where the fence would no longer be able to hide construction activities. Rampant collapse of buildings under construction in Lagos State is a clear indictment of LASBCA officials.
“It is an open secret that LASBCA officials collect bribes to look the other way when building regulations are being violated. This criminal attitude of LASBCA officials encouraged and emboldened developers on infringement. Experiences of many developers are the undisputable testimony in this regard,” he stated.
