Regulatory agencies get wake-up call over substandard houses

According to him, many houses were and are still being constructed in Nigeria with minimal conformance to acceptable standards. “There seems to be no standard for measuring quality of houses (of any type) constructed in the country. These issues are to change in view of the commitment to do so by housing developers on REDAN […]

According to him, many houses were and are still being constructed in Nigeria with minimal conformance to acceptable standards.
“There seems to be no standard for measuring quality of houses (of any type) constructed in the country. These issues are to change in view of the commitment to do so by housing developers on REDAN platform, as well as the desire of regulatory bodies like CORBON to enforce rules and regulations for building development,” he said.
He said that Nigerian cities with the exception of the enclave of the rich and powerful are characterised by poor quality structures, poor layout and streets access, lack of essential utility services, inadequate security, and social services.
He said, “In this country, some individuals, organisations and co-operative societies constitute, form or turn themselves into developers   involved   in   housing   development. They construct several units of houses for outright purchase by prospective house owners or for takeover by subscribers that have paid before the houses were built.
“Often times, house-buyers do not have the opportunity to make inputs on the quality of houses they desire or are forced to accept the houses offered them irrespective of their quality. It is common knowledge that many of such houses are sub-standard. They manifest innumerable visible defects before occupation and also latent defects that require professional expertise to detect,” he said.
He said that  CORBON has commenced the process of registering and licensing contractors  that are into building construction , saying  the exercise is to enable CORBON closely monitor and evaluate the quality of building production the contractors are rendering for  efficient performance in service delivery.    
He called on the professional regulatory bodies to take up the responsibility of implementing existing standards in the National building Code especially with respect to planning, design and production.