The Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Building, has announced that unless decisive steps are urgently taken to curb various unprofessional practices bedeviling the construction sector, the economic potentials of the sector cannot be realised, thereby creating no small loss to construction professionals and the government.
The chairman of FCT chapter of NIoB, Bldr. James Ogbagha, explained that if the sector remains unregulated, quackery will bring about deterioration of the sector such that it will warrant the declaration of a state of emergency in the near future, adding that as a responsible Institute, NIoB has continued to put in place strategies to combat various ugly trends in the sector.
In response to these threats posed by myriads of challenges facing the sector, one of which is incessant building collapse, the FCT NIoB has decided to adopt an all-inclusive attempt to address the problems. Oghagha added that “this will be done at the 2017 AGM of the FCT chapter of the Institute scheduled to take place in Abuja.”
Further discussing solutions to the sector’s problems, Ogbagha said, “The multifaceted challenges confronting the Nigerian building environment calls for urgent and strategic efforts to curb it,” adding that it is for these very reasons that the 2017 AGM becomes necessary. He however lamented the failure of a number of successive governments to heed various calls of the institute, stating that it is one of the root causes of the spate of building collapse in the country.
He said, “The country has witnessed so much loss of lives in building construction sites in Nigeria. So many buildings have collapsed. As a professional in the building sector, I want to tell you with all sense of responsibility that the deaths were avoidable and as an Institute, we will re-strategise to launch a repair of the anomalies responsible for the tragedies.
“The 2017 conference is also tailored to provide the techniques of business development, but it is not just about developing our businesses alone, it also has patriotic commitment to national development. So the 2017 NIoB Conference of the FCT chapter is about the private sector, the public sector, the economy and about the various factors that must function together in order to grow a flourishing building environment in Nigeria.”
