Surveyor Urges NASS To Pass Housing Bills

The President, Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and
Valuers (NIESV) Mr Emeka Eleh,  on
Thursday urged the National Assembly to pass the eight bills on housing
currently before it.

Eleh told our correspondent in Lagos that the bills were
submitted to the National Assembly when the late President Umar Yar’Adua was
president of the country.

According to him, the bills are still in the National
Assembly and not even one of them has been passed.

“Let me also talk about the issue of housing laws in the
National Assembly. There are about eight of them right now from the Land Use
Bill, which was submitted by the Umar Yar’Adua’s adminisstration for review.

“We urge the National Assembly to look into these laws. you
see, developing a sector has to do more with the structural issues that impede
development in the sector.

“There are laws that need to be re-tuned. I have mentioned
the Mortgage Act. I have mentioned the Land Use Act. If people have access to
land in a way that was intended by the Act, it becomes easier.

“If people have title to the land in a way that was intended
by the Act it becomes easier; if the interest rate comes down to a level that
is manageable, it becomes easier.

“If the building materials are not expensive, it becomes
easier; we are happy with the cement production.

“We are attaining almost sufficiency in that area. But at
what cost for a bag of cement at N1,700. So these are areas government must
look at,” he said.

He said that once housing infrastructure was provided,
people would be able to live in distant places outside the city centre and
still go to work in the city.

Eleh said houses in major cities across the country were
expensive because of the high demand for accommodation at the same time and in
the same places.

“In America, people live in New Jersey and still go to work
in New York. You drive one and half hours to work and go back.

“After all, you finish work at 5 by 6.30 you are home, but
you can do that if the infrastructure is good.

“A major component of housing is infrastructural spread to
ensure that people can move from point A to point B,” he said.

Eleh said that the provision of housing infrastructure would
reduce the cost of accommodation in major cities across the country.

According to him, the cost of construction will reduce if
the government provides infrastructure on the outskirts of major cities.