Architects solicit NASS backing for building collapse bill

The Nigerian Institute of Architects has approached the National Assembly, (NASS) to support a bill it was sponsoring to curb the menace of building collapse in the country.

The National President of the institute, Mr Sunny Echono, made the appeal recently, when he led members of his executive on a courtesy visit to the Clerk to the National Assembly, Amos Ojo, who is also an architect.

Echono disclosed that the proposed bill spelt out conditions that would ensure that only professionals would be allowed to carry out construction works in the country.

“It is an agenda of the institute, just like in the issue of building collapse we talk about, to straighten the legislative framework and the laws.

“This will ensure that only those who have the capacity, the experience and the competence to carry out construction activities do so,” he said.

He announced that the architects planned to avoid a situation where professionals make use of inappropriate building materials or engage quacks for the construction of projects, adding that the proposed law also specifically wants to bring defaulters to book and give the NIA the legal capacity to enforce it.

He noted that it would give guidelines on how to designate monuments, buildings of historical values and other national assets in order to preserve them.

He stated further that it would designate proper places for palaces, worship centres and traditional settings, to be able to promote them as historical sites.

“We want to make it compulsory for our buildings to be responsive to all the users, including those who are physically challenged.

“There are some buildings today that are not compliant; if one is on a wheelchair it takes two hours just to get into the premises.

“We want to make sure there is an adequate provision for disabled people in every building in this country.

“These are part of the things for which we went to enlist the support of the National Assembly for the project so that we can now begin to derive more value from our buildings.

“The current practice where the lifespan of building in Nigeria is only between 10 and 20 years is unacceptable because in other parts of the world buildings last 100 years,” Echono emphasized.