Editorial
Ikoyi Tragedy: One Building Collapse, Too Many
The utter collapse of a 21-storey building in the Ikoyi area of Lagos, Nigeria, once again raises the question of ratification, supervision, and regulation of the Nigerian building industry. It is cliché to detail such events when they take place, as they have become more and more frequent. Although the society can indict the proprietor of the project, the consultant or the contractor, there is more than can be imagined.
The Ikoyi incident is an immense tragedy in our country. No fewer than 45 people, including the property owner, were certified dead and several were maimed in the gruesome accident that trapped workers and guests to the site. Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu expressed his discontent and again demanded an investigation into the episode. While we await the outcome of the fact-finding panel, we denounce the constant crash of buildings in the country, in which Lagos has become renowned.
Between 2011 and 2019, there were 88 building collapses in Nigeria, but only 21 occurred outside Lagos. This is particularly disconcerting! The Ikoyi tragedy dominated the event of a two-storey house that failed on the same day, November 1, in the Lekki area. The building was likewise under construction and gave way after the storm that night.
Earlier, the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) had confirmed the partial collapse of a three-floor structure in Aguda, Surulere area on October 25, 2021, which was ascribed to the misdeed of the property owner. The General Manager of the LASBCA, Gbolahan Oki, acknowledged that the owner had carried out illegal renovations and added attachments to the building without recourse to the agency.
In July 2021, a three-storey building on Church Street on Lagos Island partially collapsed at night as residents were asleep. LASBCA stated that the structural deficiency of part of the water tank beam caused the incident. In the same month, a two-storey building being raised in Isawo community in Ikorodu described as an attachment, crumbled and killed the owner.
Given these developments and others in the area, it is imperative to explore the periodic collapse of buildings in Lagos, the nation’s economic hub. That they have traced virtually all cases to process abuse and the application of lower quality materials indicates that incompetence has become ubiquitous in the sector. Intentional neglect and conspiracy with regulatory authorities cannot be ignored as well.
Shortly after the catastrophe of the Ikoyi building, a letter from a consulting firm that first worked on the skyscraper, Prowess Engineering Limited, came to light. The memo, dated 20th February, 2020, and delivered to the estate development company, Fourscore Heights Limited, exonerated itself from any consequences that might ensue from what the builder was executing outside the recommended procedures. Though the letter does not stipulate what transpired between both firms, the observations of the engineering firm are valid pointers to the cause of the disaster.
Prowess’ charge that the owner of the shattered building extended beyond authorised limits and had even utilised “inferior and terrible” materials in the construction with no feedback from the authorities, is a considerable indictment of the Lagos State Government. The state-owned regulators cannot justly claim to have been unaware of what was going on at the site.
We recall the monstrous building collapse at The Synagogue Church of All Nations on September 12, 2014. That catastrophe killed 116 people, and the ensuing mess of revelations is a painful resurgence of the one in Ikoyi. While an inquest by the coroner charged the church and its engineers with “criminal negligence” and recommended them for prosecution, little came of it. Not only did those involved get away with the blood on their hands, but some religious bigots further aided to advance the plot that the collapse was an assault on the church’s pastor.
Following serial failures to bring to book such infractions, building collapse has become mundane. The crash of buildings in Lagos State today is a conspiracy among corrupt state agencies. The unethical abandonment of supervisory functions by these agencies is associated with the alienation of some construction staff. Both legitimise their treachery through greedy publicists and social media influencers that help spread a lie.
Firms like Prowess Engineering should be applauded and handed over the job to report to regulatory agencies, clients who choose to overreach themselves and hence, endanger public safety. It is conceivable that, in these situations, reporting to the authority may be ineffective because of political considerations in how the state approaches such offences. And if the authorities cannot override individual concerns, an autonomous body should receive such apprehensions on behalf of all.
Oki’s suspension by Sanwo-Olu was reassuring because it meant there would be repercussions. But by the time Lagos State Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, visited the site and expressed some self-vindication on behalf of the builders, it was no longer as certain that heads would roll. According to him, the building was closed for four months last year because they noticed certain deviations, nevertheless later reopened.
Hamzat said the builders “were making corrective actions when this took place” and “at the time this happened, they were not really constructing.” His making justifications for the builders, when a proper investigation had yet been conducted, is not heartening. Are these government officials ready to deal with the mass degeneration of Lagos’ urban planning, or will they continue on the path of self-defence and concealment?
It must be noted that every collapse of a building has substantial impacts that no one can conveniently forget. The effects are mostly in economic and social terms. These include loss of human lives, injuries, economic waste concerning loss of properties, investments, jobs, incomes, loss of trust, dignity, and acceleration of troubles among the stakeholders and environmental calamity.
Lagos is a municipality that is required to have a plethora of towering buildings to accommodate its overflowing population, but that cannot be accomplished if the buildings collapse at will. The Ikoyi incident should serve as an opportunity to affirm a rule of “non-compromise.” One way to do this is to prosecute anyone who cannot carry out his or her obligations. Until those who undermine industry standards are prosecuted and jailed, there can be no breakthrough on that front.
When Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, received the Board and Management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), led by its Chairman, Senator Adeyeye Adedayo Clement, his message was unmistakable: Rivers’ seaports remain underutilised, and Nigeria is poorer for it. The governor’s lament was a sad reminder of how neglect and centralisation continue to choke the nation’s economic arteries.
The governor, in his remarks at Government House, Port Harcourt, expressed concern that the twin seaports — the NPA in Port Harcourt and the Onne Seaport — have not been operating at their full potential. He underscored that seaports are vital engines of national development, pointing out that no prosperous nation thrives without efficient ports and airports. His position aligns with global realities that maritime trade remains the backbone of industrial expansion and international commerce.
Indeed, the case of Rivers State is peculiar. It hosts two major ports strategically located along the Bonny River axis, yet cargo throughput has remained dismally low compared to Lagos. According to NPA’s 2023 statistics, Lagos ports (Apapa and Tin Can Island) handled over 75 per cent of Nigeria’s container traffic, while Onne managed less than 10 per cent. Such a lopsided distribution is neither efficient nor sustainable.
Governor Fubara rightly observed that the full capacity operation of Onne Port would be transformative. The area’s vast land mass and industrial potential make it ideal for ancillary businesses — warehousing, logistics, ship repair, and manufacturing. A revitalised Onne would attract investors, create jobs, and stimulate economic growth, not only in Rivers State but across the Niger Delta.
The multiplier effect cannot be overstated. The port’s expansion would boost clearing and forwarding services, strengthen local transport networks, and revitalise the moribund manufacturing sector. It would also expand opportunities for youth employment — a pressing concern in a state where unemployment reportedly hovers around 32 per cent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Yet, the challenge lies not in capacity but in policy. For years, Nigeria’s maritime economy has been suffocated by excessive centralisation. Successive governments have prioritised Lagos at the expense of other viable ports, creating a traffic nightmare and logistical bottlenecks that cost importers and exporters billions annually. The governor’s call, therefore, is a plea for fairness and pragmatism.
Making Lagos the exclusive maritime gateway is counter productive. Congestion at Tin Can Island and Apapa has become legendary — ships often wait weeks to berth, while truck queues stretch for kilometres. The result is avoidable demurrage, product delays, and business frustration. A more decentralised port system would spread economic opportunities and reduce the burden on Lagos’ overstretched infrastructure.
Importers continue to face severe difficulties clearing goods in Lagos, with bureaucratic delays and poor road networks compounding their woes. The World Bank’s Doing Business Report estimates that Nigerian ports experience average clearance times of 20 days — compared to just 5 days in neighbouring Ghana. Such inefficiency undermines competitiveness and discourages foreign investment.
Worse still, goods transported from Lagos to other regions are often lost to accidents or criminal attacks along the nation’s perilous highways. Reports from the Federal Road Safety Corps indicate that over 5,000 road crashes involving heavy-duty trucks occurred in 2023, many en route from Lagos. By contrast, activating seaports in Rivers, Warri, and Calabar would shorten cargo routes and save lives.
The economic rationale is clear: making all seaports operational will create jobs, enhance trade efficiency, and boost national revenue. It will also help diversify economic activity away from the overburdened South West, spreading prosperity more evenly across the federation.
Decentralisation is both an economic strategy and an act of national renewal. When Onne, Warri, and Calabar ports operate optimally, hinterland states benefit through increased trade and infrastructure development. The federal purse, too, gains through taxes, duties, and improved productivity.
Tin Can Island, already bursting at the seams, exemplifies the perils of over-centralisation. Ships face berthing delays, containers stack up, and port users lose valuable hours navigating chaos. The result is higher operational costs and lower competitiveness. Allowing states like Rivers to fully harness their maritime assets would reverse this trend.
Compelling all importers to use Lagos ports is an anachronistic policy that stifles innovation and local enterprise. Nigeria cannot achieve its industrial ambitions by chaining its logistics system to one congested city. The path to prosperity lies in empowering every state to develop and utilise its natural advantages — and for Rivers, that means functional seaports.
Fubara’s call should not go unheeded. The Federal Government must embrace decentralisation as a strategic necessity for national growth. Making Rivers’ seaports work is not just about reviving dormant infrastructure; it is about unlocking the full maritime potential of a nation yearning for balance, productivity, and shared prosperity.