16th March, 2019
Alhaji Fasasi Muhammed-Jamiu, the National President, Builders and Construction Skilled Artisans Association of Nigeria (BACSAAN) has urged governments to engage and empower the association in the fight against building collapses in the country.
Muhammed-Jamiu said that this would greatly reverse the spate of building collapse mostly associated with poor construction.
He made the call in Abuja on Saturday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
NAN reports that the Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE) and Nigeria Institute of Builders (NIOB) and other professional bodies work with government agencies in monitoring standard of buildings across the country.
He was speaking against the backdrop of collapsed buildings in Lagos and Ibadan on Wednesday and Friday.
According to him, existing regulatory bodies at different levels of governments are trying but don’t have the wherewithal to make much effective impact across the length and breadth of the country.
“Building collapses in Nigeria can be avoided if pre-adequate measures are taken by all key players in the sector.
“There are construction monitoring agencies in the country, but the ability to know where poor jobs are being done and true status of buildings lays with the artisans that work on them.
” Governments, especially, at the federal level have invited us for several meetings, its high time we were involved in the regulatory exercise.
“Our inclusion will complement efforts of the existing operators because we take part from the beginning to the end of each construction.
“It goes beyond academic brilliance to truly reveal the true status of completed buildings and those under construction.
“The major work in building construction is practical and use of energy which our members are ready to give but many building owners or governments are yet to engage us in that regards.