Business
Experts Want Implementation Of National Building Code
Bothered by the delay in the implementation of the National Building Code (NBC), some operators in the built up environment have called on the federal authorities to expedite action on the implementation of the reviewed code.
The operators made the call yesterday in an interview with newsmen in Lagos. Former President of the Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB), Mr Chucks Omeife, said that the implementation of the NBC was necessary in order to restore sanity to construction activities in the country.
It will be recalled that the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, in June, 2018, announced the review of the code by the Federal Executive Council.
According to him, the reviewed code will not make any remarkable impact until an enabling law is enacted to back it up.
He said the law was necessary to facilitate the enforcement of the code for its effects to be felt.
Fashola added that the Federal Government should propose an Executive Bill to the National Assembly for an enabling law/legislation that would enforce the various provisions of the NBC.
Omeife said that passage of the bill would guarantee an orderly and effective building environment.
“Without an enabling law to back the code, the NBC is like a toothless bulldog that will have no effect whatsoever.
“Buildings still collapse in the country because there is no law that stipulates the punishments applicable to professionals/individuals who executed the construction of collapsed buildings.
“Meanwhile, such sanctions and stipulations are stipulated in the National building Code.
“So, until the code is signed into law, such that people will become liable for the offences they commit, the issue of misconduct of professionals which results in building collapse and other menaces facing the industry may not stop,’’ Omeife said.
He said that the industry had been facing huge challenges and a crisis of confidence in recent times, due to the involvement of some professionals in some developments that had collapsed.
The NIOB ex-boss noted that the ineffectiveness of the NBC was the major cause of the challenges in the industry, stressing that enforcement of the code would put an end to the menaces in the building construction industry.
Contributing, Secretary, Marketing and Corporate Affairs, Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyor (NIQS), , Mr Jide Oke, said the Federal Government should make the document more effective at all levels of government, to tackle the issue of importation of building materials.
Business
NAFDAC Decries Circulation Of Prohibited Food Items In markets …….Orders Vendors’ Immediate Cessation Of Dealings With Products
Importers, market traders, and supermarket operators have therefore, been directed to immediately cease all dealings in these items and to notify their supply chain partners to halt transactions involving prohibited products.
The agency emphasized that failure to comply will attract strict enforcement measures, including seizure and destruction of goods, suspension or revocation of operational licences, and prosecution under relevant laws.
The statement said “The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised an alarm over the growing incidence of smuggling, sale, and distribution of regulated food products such as pasta, noodles, sugar, and tomato paste currently found in markets across the country.
“These products are expressly listed on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are not permitted for importation”.
NAFDAC also called on other government bodies, including the Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service(NIS) Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigeria Shippers Council, and the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), to collaborate in enforcing the ban on these unsafe products.
