On November 1, 2021, at exactly 2:45pm, the first report of a high-rise 21-storey building collapse on Gerrard Road in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State hit our screens and was the topic on all social media platforms.
A question that had plagued the minds of many Nigerians then was, “What exactly happened?”
The PUNCH had reported in August 2022 that the coroner in charge of the investigation, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, attributed the building collapse to the irresponsibility and negligence of government agencies in charge to adhere to best practices responsible for approval and supervision of the project, adding that the building’s density and setback on the site showed gross violations of the Lagos State Building Regulations.
The collapse claimed the lives of the owner of the property, Femi Osibona, his personal assistant, a visiting friend from the US and a corps member of the National Youth Service Corps, among other victims.
Today, The PUNCH remembers the victims that lost their lives to the tragic collapse that shook the nation and also points the touch on the Lagos State Government and its ‘affordable’ housing scheme.
Resolution for Ikoyi building collapse
In February 2022, the state government agreed that the existing two 15-storey buildings still standing at the site of the collapse on Gerrard Road in Ikoyi should be demolished and the land forfeited to the state government.
As of June 2022, it was reported that the government had started the controlled demolition of the remaining uncompleted buildings, stating that they had failed integrity tests.
Our correspondent who passed by the site noticed, however, that the buildings were still standing with minimal deconstruction done to them.
Justice Adewunmi Oshin of the Lagos High Court had stopped the Lagos State Government from taking over and demolishing the two remaining high-rise buildings constructed by Fourscore Heights Limited in Ikoyi
The judge also ordered all parties in the suit to maintain status quo pending the hearing and determination of a suit filed by 15 subscribers in the high-rise buildings.
30 buildings collapse in Lagos between January and July, 2022
Since the collapse on Gerrard Road in Ikoyi, one would expect that the LASG, would swing into action to ensure there isn’t a repeat, but a disturbing report by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency in September of 2022 proved otherwise as data provided stated that a total of 30 buildings collapsed in Lagos between January and July 2022.
Of the 30 collapsed building incidents recorded, the data showed that 24 buildings totally collapsed and six partially collapsed.
The total figure of lives lost was not disclosed.
However, after a seven-storey building under construction collapsed in Oba Idowu Abiodun Oniru Road, Oniru Estate, in the Victoria Island area of the state, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, announced the resignation of the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Idris Salako, who was the commissioner as at the time the Ikoyi building collapsed as well. Mr. Omotayo Bamgbose-Martins, was announced as the new commissioner.
Lagos government’s ‘affordable’ housing scheme
Governor Sanwo-Olu has always reiterated his administration’s commitment to affordable housing, and has commissioned over 12 housing estates in the state since he assumed office in 2019.
But the reality is not in total confirmation to the stance of the governor.
The current price for a four-bedroom duplex in Bayview Estate, which the governor inaugurated in October 2021 at Ikate area of Lekki, is going for as high as N130 million, while a four-bedroom mansionette in Courtland Villa, which the governor inaugurated in May, 2020 at the Jakande area of Lekki, is selling at N180 million.
A resident of Courtland Villa, who pleaded anonymity, said, “The last time we had estate meeting, the houses were said to be going for N180 million, they were selling for about N70 million before. There is also a service charge of N141,000 quarterly, that is every three months.”
Also, some contractor’s, who worked with the developer who built the Courtland Villa Estate, have said that they were yet to be paid in full for the project that was completed and inaugurated over two years ago
A representative for one of the paint companies that worked on the site said, “We are yet to receive our balance for that job, it has been over two years now and the company is saying nothing about our payment. Over the years, we have reached out to the company several times and they have not responded to us.”
One of the screeders who confided in our correspondent said, “I am being owed about N300,000 for that job. I did not know who to call concerning my money so I decided to forget about it, I will not work for them again.”
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