Moses Boyo, Port Harcourt
Port Harcourt, May 18, 2016 – The Nigerian Institute of Building (NIB) today called on the Rivers State Government to involve the institute in all its construction and approval of building plans in the state to end incident of collapse buildings in the state and Nigeria.
Chairman of Nigerian Institute of Building (NIB) Rivers State Chapter, Builder Moses Ugheoke who made the appeal in an interview with journalists on the recent collapse of the Nigerian Bar Association secretariat also urged the state government to enforce the National Building Code established by the Federal Government.
Ugheoke said the institute is concerned about construction of building, noting that the organization was worried about collapse structure, adding that if government abides by the National Building code and ensure that all constructions of buildings in the country are supervise by registered builders, the rate of collapse structures would reduce and properties and lives would be saved.
’’ We feel that in all of this, the Institute in Rivers state feels concern about construction of building in the state. We as an institute are not carried along in the construction especially in respect to some of the government structures and projects. We are empowered by law’’ the Nigerian Building Act empowers builders to handle all productions of building in the country.
‘’The National Building Code contains information that requires building and construction work in Nigeria as specified by government and detailed out by the code whereby the function of each of the professionals is spelt out. From the Architect, Structural Engineers, Town Planners, Builders, Estate Surveyors and Quantity Surveyors and all of us were spell out page by page in the code.
‘’ We are surprised that buildings are constructed in Rivers State and there is no recourse to this code. The builders are totally left out of the process of building production management here and we feel that it is not the proper thing to do because the code has empowered and given each of every one the professionals in the building environment a role to play’’, he said.
He said the role of building production and management is strictly for builders adding that now that we have started having cases of building collapse again in the state, it is necessary for the agencies empowered in the government sector in charge of building structure to involve the Institute in the production.
‘’ If we take our time to visit those sites where the collapse occurred, you will find out that there is no builder on the site or involve and we believe that it is not the proper way to go. We are concerned and worried that buildings are constructed without the input of registered builders. The law has empowered us to be the production managers of buildings everywhere in Nigeria, including Rivers State but we are here and these things happened and nobody boarders’’, he noted.
He however appealed to the state government to create Departments of Building technology in the Rivers State University of Science and Technology and Ken Saro Wiwa Polytechnic to enable Rivers Students study the course, adding that most Universities in the country offer the course.
He noted that this would help produce more graduates in the state, regretting that most of the ministries and other agencies such as Greater Port Harcourt Development Authority do not have Registered Builders in their employment.
Ugheoke said the Nigerian Institute of building is a professional body set up by a law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria adding that cap 13, of the law explained that the council is empowered by law to take responsibility for all production of buildings in the country.
He noted that the former administration set up a committee to look into training of builders in the Nigerian universities and other tertiary institutions, adding that the committee were also involved in accreditation of programmes for universities that teach buildings.
Ugheoke warned that engineers which have a different professional body should adhere to the National Building Code and concentrate on its aspect rather than handling the production of buildings and construction which is the function of a builder.
‘’The Nigerian Society of Engineers is a professional body that has its own laws that regulates engineers in their practice. Just like the architects have their own laws that regulates and control them. All the professional bodies have laws that empowered them to practice ’’ , he explained
