Stop sleeping under building under construction – Anambra govt warns residents

 Anambra state government has warned residents against passing the night in any building in the state undergoing construction.

Executive Chairman, Anambra State Physical Planning Board (ANSPPB), Barr Chike Maduekwe who gave the directive during a media briefing, also warned that construction work must not exceed 7pm daily.

He said the warnings were part of government’s directive to mitigate building collapse in the state.

Describing spate of building collapses in the state as worrisome with its attendant loss of lives, Maduekwe said all permits for ongoing construction projects have been suspended with immediate effect, while developers handling projects were required to bring their approval documents for revalidation.

“If you notice, most of these buildings collapse at night and developers must ensure that such does not happen again.

“Effective immediately, all developers will now be required to comply with the compulsory insurance Act of 2003 of Builders’ liability and Public Liability Insurance before they can be granted building permit approvals.

“The reason is to protect the workers and the public who work in the site and who come around the building site,” he stated.

According to ANSPPB boss, state government is not revoking existing building permits, but ordering its revalidation to be sure the approval given is what the developer is building.

He continued, “Because most developers after obtaining building permit approval do not engage relevant professionals in the Built industry, Anambra State Physical Planning Board will now audit and ensure that these Professionals have been engaged in all ongoing constructions.

“This is an already existing requirement in the building regulation, but because there is shortage of personnel, developers get approval and begin to do what they like.

“Also, any development that commences without 7 days prior notice to ANSPPB will be deemed illegal and is liable to be demolished and the developer will be made to face the full embrace of the law.

“During the audit, any buildings that are found to have structural integrity issues will be subjected to non-destructive testing (NDT) by the Material Testing laboratory, which the law requires us to collaborate with.

“Furthermore, soil investigation report has now become a mandatory requirements for most constructions in Anambra State and all buildings above two floors must submit Geotechnical surveys, failing which there will be severe penalties.

“This is because in the past, we found that most of these building that collapse have to do with the soil and the kind of foundation put in place.”

Maduekwe further announced government’s decision to hire professional consultants nominated by professional bodies, structural engineers, architects, to monitor construction sites and vet plans statewide.

“The Board plans to intensify efforts on statutory stage inspections as well as signing of stage certification forms by relevant professionals, who will be liable for any building failure or collapse, not government staff.

“Buildings under construction that have been abandoned for 5 years and above, will need to be recertified before the recommencement of construction work on it to ascertain the structural stability of the building.

“Also, all Professionals involved in any Development must present to ANSPPB their Professional Indemnity Insurance alongside the letter of undertaking before the Building permit approval will be granted to the project they are supervising.”

Maduekwe revealed that the Board is opening the ‘Operation Show Your Building Permit’ from 1st of August to the 31st of October, 2024, during which all property owners with buildings that lack necessary approvals are required to regularize their building plans.

“This amnesty period is an opportunity for compliance and to avoid penalties that may be imposed after the expiration of the grace period.

“To regularize your building plan, please visit the Anambra State Physical Planning Board for necessary documentation and procedures at the ANSPPB Headquarters, Old Government Station, Amawbia, Awka Capital Territory, Anambra State.

“Failure to comply with this directive after the stipulated period will result in appropriate sanctions. Noting that building collapses cannot be completely eradicated, as it is a human action that is prone to mistakes.

“The objective of unveiling the directives is to substantially reduce the incidence of such building collapses. Government is prepared to do everything it can to address the incidence of building collapsing.

“Lagos is one of the most proactive jurisdictions in terms of buildng construction, yet, there are still collapses there. The most regulated industry in the world is the airline industry, but we are still having planes crash.

“When such misfortunes occur, investigations are commenced to check what happened and avert a recurrence, but here, we always look for who to blame,” Maduekwe noted.