An Abuja-based town planner, Dr. Chinedu Okoro, has blamed regulatory agencies for the incessant building deficiencies, inability to follow a city master plan, collapsed buildings, and other irregularities witnessed in the building and town planning of Nigerian cities.
Dr. Okoro disclosed this in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, shortly after taking over as the current Ebonyi State representative of the Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria, TOPREC.
He maintained that bureaucratic bottlenecks, laxity, lack of political will, and other delays in the approval processes of building plans and designs have forced many politicians and builders to move into their sites and start construction without the necessary approvals.
“Politicians and builders are not the problem we have in the building collapse and building deficiencies we witness today. The problem is the regulatory bodies. Those who are supposed to approve the house, did they approve it?
“Go to other cities, builders follow regulations, why do they do that? Because there is a set pattern. If you want to build in Ebonyi State, where do you go and get your approval within three weeks to one month?
“The problem is that when people have money to build and they submit their building plan and somebody will keep them for a very long time without approving the plan and the money is going down, what will the person do, he will move in and start building without a regulation, but when you have approval, you follow regulation.”
Dr. Okoro stated that there are many planning errors in the different local government areas of Ebonyi State adding that the body will collaborate with the state government to move into the local government areas to correct some of the anomalies witnessed in the building plans.
The Abuja-based town planner noted that as a representative of Ebonyi State in TOPREC, he would ensure that the state stands out in planning regulations, adding that TOPREC is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that planning regulations are stamped on the ground.
He commended the state governor, Francis Nwifuru for nominating him as the representative of the state adding that he would deploy all his wealth of experience to ensure that the state stands out in planning regulations and reduce the incidence of planning errors.
The state chapter chairman of Nigerian Institute of Town Planners, NITP, Mr. Ude Nnachi-Ukpai expressed sadness over the humiliation, insults and physical attacks its members receives while carrying out their duties and responsibilities.
