By Tochukwu Ezukanma<\/p>\n
Accordingto the Federal Ministry of Power, Works & Housing, fifty four
\nbuildingscollapsed in Nigeria within a period of five years (between 2012
\nand 2016). Thisis an average of more than ten buildings collapses every
\nyear, which is, bywhatever standard, unnervingly excessive. And every
\nbuilding cave-in leaves atrail of woes: death, pains and sorrow, and
\nun-healable emotional and psychologicalwounds.<\/p>\n
Recently,a 3 storey building, still occupied by businesses, residents and
\na primaryschool, collapsed in Ita Faji area of Lagos, killing twenty
\npersons, many of themprimary school pupils.<\/p>\n
Asusual, the tragedy spawned emotive responses and solicitous visits
\nbyhigh-level government officials. In his response, the president,
\nMohammaduBuhari, expressed his distress and commiserated with the affected
\nfamilies. Thegovernor of Lagos State, Akinwonmi Ambode, visited the site
\nof the catastrophe,lamented the tragedy, condoled with the bereaved
\nfamilies, and ordered theimmediate demolition of all the defective
\nstructures already marked fordemolition in Lagos State. These visits and
\ncogent remarks were necessary and laudable.However, the problem with the
\nNigeria power elite is not in political posturing,and in display of
\nconcerns, and making germane statements, for bereavedfamilies in times of
\nemergencies and disasters. It is also not in orderinginvestigations and
\nissuing of reports.<\/p>\n
Theirproblem is in accountability. Public accountability is borne out of a
\nsense ofresponsibility on the part of the governing for the governed. The
\nNigerianpower elite are yet to realize that their legitimacy and moral
\nauthority derivesolely from the trust reposed on them by the people, and
\nthat once they betraythis trust, they must resign. The caving in of a
\nfatally defective structure onthe innocent and unsuspecting, especially,
\nprimary school students was anegregious betrayal of the public trust by
\nthe Ambode administration,especially, the Lagos State Building Control
\nAgency (LASBCA), that regulatesbuilding construction and the state
\nMinistry of Education that allowed the continuedoperation of an illegal
\nprimary school in that exceedingly dilapidated building.<\/p>\n
Thefundamental reasons for building collapse in Lagos State are the
\ncorruption andprofessional negligence of the officials of the LASBCA. It
\nis their statutoryroles to monitor and regulate building construction, and
\nthus, ensure thatbuilders\/developers strictly compliance with professional
\nstandards and governmentguidelines and ordinances in building
\nconstruction; and to identifystructurally defective buildings and evacuate
\nand demolish them. It is theirfailure to thoroughly carry out their
\nstatutory duties that results in buildingcollapses in the state. They fail
\nto do their work because they are corrupt,and are therefore, bribed by
\nbuilders and landlords. This allows the builders touse substandard
\nbuilding materials, employ quacks and circumvent buildingguidelines and
\nordinances in the attempt to maximize profit. It makes itpossible for
\nlandlords to forestall the evacuation and demolition of their
\nbuildingsalready designated for demolition, and thus, continue to collect
\nrent from them.<\/p>\n
Publicaccountability demands that the chairman of LASBCA and the state
\nCommissionerfor Education take personal responsibilities for the
\ncorruption and derelictionof duties (of their subordinates) that resulted
\nto the Ita Faji disaster; andresign immediately. In addition, officials of
\nLASBCA and the state educationministry, that are, in any way, culpable of
\nacts of corruption and negligencethat resulted in that calamity and the
\ncontinued operation of an illegalprimary school in the collapsed building
\nshould be arrested, persecuted andjailed. It will serve as a powerful
\ndeterrence to future building collapses inLagos, as the officials of
\nLASBCA, Ministry of Education, and, by extension,every ministry and agency
\nwill learn, the hard way, that they will be heldresponsible for their
\nprofessional misdeeds.<\/p>\n
Disconcertingly,thus far, the state government has not demonstrated any
\nresolve to hold anyoneaccountable: no one will be forced to resign, and no
\none will be arrested,prosecuted and jailed. Already, officials of LASBCA
\nare looking for scapegoats.They are blaming the landlords for their
\ninability to evacuate and demolish unsafebuildings before they cave-in on
\ntheir occupants. They claim the landlords refuseto vacate structurally
\ndefective buildings marked for demolition. But theirprotestations ring
\nhollow. LASBCA has both regulatory and enforcement powers. Itis empowered
\nby the law to forcibly evacuate and demolish structures already
\ndesignatedfor demolition.<\/p>\n
Toevade political responsibility for what is a flagrant blunder by
\nhisadministration, Governor Ambode inaugurated a five-man panel to
\ninvestigate the cause of the collapseof the three-storey building. The
\npanel is to determine the level of negligenceon the part of the developer
\nor owner, role of the state government, and then, makeappropriate
\nrecommendations and proffer remedial measures to stem buildingcollapse in
\nthe future. Whatnonsense? So, despite the extremely high number of
\nbuilding collapses in LagosState and the plethora of investigations that
\nfollowed them, and the reports thatemanated from these investigations, the
\nLagos State government is yet to knowthe reasons for building collapse and
\nthe remedy to it? The reasons forbuilding collapse in Lagos state are
\nconspicuously obvious: corruption andprofessional negligence, and its only
\nremedy is public accountability.<\/p>\n
To set up an investigative panel to determine what isalready known is
\npolitical trumpery. It is political manipulation by a graspingpolitical
\nclass consumed by greed, giddy withpower and flush with wealth that is
\ncontemptuously indifferent to the ever increasingplight of the masses and
\ndisdainful of the life of the common man. To continuethis political
\ndeception with an issue that has resulted in the death of somany, and
\nportends to result in even more deaths is tantamount to gambling withhuman
\nlives. It is coldblooded shenanigan that casts Nigeria for what it
\nreallyis, a menagerie, and Governor Ambode as a clownish hypocrite.<\/p>\n
TochukwuEzukanma writes from Lagos, Nigeria<\/p>\n