Engineers, Architects Condemn Building Collapse In Imo

The Nigerian Soceity of Engineers (NSE) and the Nigerian Institute  of Architects (NIA), have  decried the incessant building collapse in Imo State and called for enforcement  of standard in the building industry.
The two organisations expressed their concern over the incidents when the officials  inspected the two-storey  building around the Fire Service area on Mbaise Road, Owerri, which collapsed last Sunday.
The NSE and  NIA called on the State Government  to ensure conduct of integrity test on  all buildings in the state suspected  to be  substandard, in order  to forestall future reoccurrence.
It would be recalled that five building collapsed in Owerri, the state capital, between July 7 and August 13.
They are  two high rise buildings  under construction in Obinze and Umuguma, both in Owerri  West Local Government  Area, which  collapsed  on July 7 and July 8, respectively.
A storey-building went down in Oforola area and killed three  people on July 9, while a hotel  under construction  on Airport  Road, Owerri North, equally collapsed the following day.
The Sunday’s building collapse  claimed four lives, while six others received  various  degrees  of injuries.
The  State NSE Chairman, Mr. Emeka  Ugoanyawu, blamed the incessant  collapse on use of quacks in the industry as well as the state regulatory agencies, including Owerri Capital Development Authority (OCDA), for  failing to supervise  THE contractors.
He urged Governor Roachas Okorocha to summon emergency meeting of building professionals  to address the matter, and called for adequate  sanction for failed contractors.
Okoro insisted that every contractor must indicate on a signpost,  the clients of every building, to enable  government to know  who to hold responsible  in case of failure, pointing out that a preliminary investigation showed that the building collapsed  due to the use of substandard materials and engagement of non-professionals.
“We have lost so many lives in less than three months because  contractors have continued to compromise standard and concerned agencies  have failed to supervise them.
“We, as a group, will soon come out with a stand on this whole problem  and we hope that government will implement  our recommendations”, Okoro said.
The Secretary of Nigerian Institute  of Builders in Imo, Mr Anddy Osuagwu, blamed regulatory agencies  for the  incidents.
Osuagwu urged government to employ more professionalA into the regulatory agencies to enable them to perform effectively.
“What we are suffering in the building   industry  today is as a result  of quackery and until the problem is  addressed, we will still be  where we are,’ she said.

Ikechukwu Iweajunwa