From Our Housing Stand (19)
A technical report (NBRRI Report No. 45) published by the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI) revealed very disturbing factors that caused the caving in of a structure in the Benue State University Makurdi. Topmost among these is failure of consultants to adhere to the Regulations Guiding Building Construction in Nigeria.
It would be recalled that a wing of the Faculty of Social Sciences complex housing the lecture auditorium in the Benue State University fell down in November 2018. The building which was one of the Tertiary Education Trust fund (TETfund) projects collapsed even when there were no activities in the complex.
Though no lives were lost as students and staff of the university were on strike due to industrial dispute between government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the time, valuable items like computers, vital documents were said to be destroyed as the building was reduced to rubble. Similarly, the incident was a sad reminder to us that the construction industry is in a sorry state.
Apparently, most of the building collapse cases in Nigeria are not as a result of natural occurrences but failure of contractors to obey the rules and observe the processes necessary for good job. We believe that buildings that are constructed with strict adherence to guidelines and with international best practices cannot just go down the way they do here.
After a study of the phenomenon, NBRRI observed that “there were no evidence of inspections and certification/approval of reinforcement placement before concrete work at the roof beam and slab level, and approval of steel roof works before covering with aluminum roofing sheets.”
The research institute in its report in February 2019 averred, “At no stage was there any statutory Compliance Certificate issued. Standard practices in building industry were at no time domesticated on site.”
NBBRI stated that the failure was structural in nature and relevant structural design that was in consonance with the consultant architectural proposal was not in place.
On the whole, “There was negligence on the part of all stakeholders in the construction of the building. During the course of the construction of the project, the client’s management team displayed a severe opacity and lack of a presence of mind during visits to the site,” the institute stated adding that the involvement of persons who were not professionals contributed to the errors and subsequent collapse of the building.
To this end, the report recommended among others that the university should check all buildings constructed within the period under review for possible signs of failure.
“Some of the structures observed indicate significant structural cracks, which is a pointer to several other construction defects in the building. There is need to re-evaluate the totality of the buildings…” the NBRRI report concluded.
Viewpoint Housing News is of the view that frequent building collapse incidents should not be allowed to become a norm in a country that parades large number of professionals and professes to be a giant. Cutting of corners and award of contracts to unqualified relatives and cronies must stop now.
As we are aware, the rainy season is an eerie time for buildings as largescale precipitation and flooding are no friends to weak and poorly constructed structures. It is therefore, the duty of government to sit up and seriously implement policies against building failure and ensure appropriate sanctions are meted out to violators. The rules are there and we know them. What is lacking is the will to put them to use.
Regulatory agencies have to be more rigorous in enforcing the laws and punishing culprits in building collapse cases. For instance, when the Morandi Bridge collapsed in Genoa, Italy, in 2018, the Transport Minister, Danilo Toninelli did not only call for the resignation of top officials of the company operating the bridge, but promised to start proceedings against the company, which could result in sanctions of up to $169 million. But in Nigeria, it happens and there are no consequences so perpetrators continue to do their thing.
Nigeria has to be tough on those responsible for building collapse, especially those found guilty of dereliction of duty; otherwise the ugly incident will continue to plague the country. We call on relevant professional bodies to on their part enforce their existing codes on their members who fail to do things right.
We are compelled to lament here that the quest to get-rich-quick with little or no consideration for scruples is really a terrible national malaise that must be tackled frontally. It is a sad commentary on the nation that even educational structures have become big business in Nigeria such that quacks could invade campuses of the Ivory Tower and perpetrate their devilish acts there.
The problem of collapsed buildings is nationwide therefore, a holistic approach is necessary in the fight. A comprehensive survey of structures in the nation will show that both in urban and rural areas, any of our people live in structures unfit for human habitation. The relevant agencies in each locality should carry out integrity tests on houses and ensure that needed actions are taken.
We believe the report produced by NBRRI is not meant for the shelf. Recommendations therein should be put to practical task as quickly as possible. It is only by so doing that the institute will be encouraged to do more in the mission of salvaging the construction sector of the economy. This will also save the country from the continual embarrassing building failure incidents.
