‘Northern projects better than southern ones’
Quality and high cost of building materials, how do they impact your profession?Very seriously! We all know about cases of collapsed buildings. It’s as a result of inferior jobs and inferior materials. If you don’t put in the best, you can’t get the best. Block makers are not helping matters. They make inferior blocks because […]
Quality and high cost of building materials, how do they impact your profession?
Very seriously! We all know about cases of collapsed buildings. It’s as a result of inferior jobs and inferior materials. If you don’t put in the best, you can’t get the best. Block makers are not helping matters. They make inferior blocks because they use less cement in much quantity of sand just because they want to make much profit. We’re happy for Standards Organisation of Nigeria. This is because they are able to check quality of goods flooding this country to a great extent.
Engineers are supposed to supervise structures. Doesn’t it mean they’re part of the trouble?
There are cases where people who’re not professionals or qualified engineers attempt to perform construction or building works. And surprisingly people patronise them. People consult persons who are not engineers for technical advice but would reject professional advice of real engineers. Why won’t there be cases of collapsed building. In a case where a man decides to raise his bungalow built many years ago to an upstairs, as a professional, an engineer would warn against it but he would ignore the sound advice. Let me say that not one case of building collapse has been traced to an engineer.
What has NSE done to draw government’s attention to the deplorable state of federal roads in Cross River State?
NSE is like any other professional groups in the country. We can only act as pressure groups to draw their attention to critical issues. Like the NMA [Nigerian Medical Association], they can only make noise about certain medical issues and go on strike. This will then force government to act. Lawyers too do it. In the same vein, since NSE can’t enact laws, we can only make our views known. We’re all familiar with poor infrastructure in the country, including housing, roads, electricity, etc.
On the deplorable federal highways, there hasn’t been enough money to undertake the total rehabilitation of the roads yet. Funds are yet to be released. You should know that, for instance, if government earmarks 100 roads for construction or rehabilitation the funds released are often not enough for the 100 roads. What therefore happens is the most important ones are selected and worked on. Roads are like shoes we wear daily. Of course, force affects it. If you don’t keep repairing them, they wear and become worse. There’s insufficient allocation of funds for road repairs.
There’s another aspect. In the days of the military, well, this is in no way endorsing them for governance, they could be advised not to award certain jobs to Mr Y for reasons of technical incompetence and there wouldn’t be any complaints. Theirs, there is no room for delays. But in democracy, since it involves everybody which seems to have become a curse, the many voices can cause problems.
In the South-South, if out of the 100 roads, 20 can be bid for and politicians will capitalise on them and share them amongst cronies, incompetent contractors and allies who’re not professionally equipped to handle them. In the north, projects are well handled because their chiefs and political leaders insist on awarding such contracts to the best and well-equipped construction experts. They denied themselves the opportunity to make money. They won’t award the jobs to themselves but to the A grade firms. No doubt, all projects are very well handled and function optimally. Here, in the South, we all know what happens.
Can the federal government be exonerated from this problem?
When former governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke launched the urban renewal programme, there was need to contract competent contractors. A vice president’s firm wanted to grab the contracts. Duke stood his ground so that those who assigned had to be changed for more competent people. This tallied with government rules which insist that the most competent people should be given jobs through bidding processes.
Is there any hope that the federal government might soon fix the very deplorable Odukpani-Uyo-Aba highway?
As you may know, there’s presently lack of budgetary implementation. The Federal Government has not released money to so many sectors. This affects the said road. They were supposed to have procured and awarded this and other roads. There was announcement to this effect in the media.
NDDC [Niger Delta Development Commission] at a time wanted to intervene but they had the same problem of lack of funds. I remember Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State promised to work on the road but same issue of funds. But the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency has given limited rehabilitation contract to Sermatech. For three months they are fixing the worst parts of the said road. That, I think is the best measure meantime since the Federal Government is yet to release funds. We all heard when the Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said government was prosecuting the Boko Haram war and therefore funds were not available for other issues yet.
Do you think government is justified to extend patronage to its friends in award of technical jobs?
It’s wrong for government to give out technical contracts to unqualified and incompetent contractors just because such are close to men in power. Jobs should only be given to those proved to be professionally skilful and equipped with the machinery to execute such jobs. By giving jobs to friends that are not qualified, governors, senators, council chairmen put the entire state into jeopardy. We should do the right thing by putting round pegs in round holes.
How many NSE members are involved in the ongoing massive construction projects in Cross River State?
Let me rather put it this way. When we were small, we knew people that were contractors, involved in construction or something. By the time we grew up we saw that these same people have metamorphosed into other things. Can you tell me one or two indigenous contractor that were into road construction projects and where they are now? Have they been consistent? Most of us are incidental contractors because our brother or cousin has become governor, senator or top government official. But some foreign engineers or contractors have been consistent over the years.
Why would they award jobs to inconsistent people whereas there are those who have been on such jobs for many years? It pains me as a Nigerian that we’re not able to or not interested in getting real engineering jobs but preferring peripheral ones. Nigerian engineers by now would have had big companies but many prefer to become consultants, not contractors or constructors.
As consultants, they only sit with their laptops, churn out reports and get paid as against delving into mainstream engineering. When you hear them talk about local content, they only want to create opportunities that will enable them fix themselves in to consult. Why can’t they go for the pipeline jobs and other hard core engineering jobs? As an engineer, it embarrasses me to see that we are not serious.
Do you foresee a time when Nigerian content law will be fully implemented?
I’m very hopeful. But it’s worrisome that since 1958 when oil was discovered in Nigeria not many Nigerians have been able to plunge deep into oil drilling and engineering although oil has created multi-billionaire Nigerians.