AIG Blames Contractors’ Association for Collapse of Buildings in Nigeria

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

The Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Zone 5, Benin-city, Edo State, Abubakar Mohammed, monday said the conspiracy between contractors and building engineers are largely responsible for the spate of building collapse in the country,

The police boss stated this in Benin City while playing host to the executive members of National Association of Contractors who were in his office to seek collaboration between the body and security agencies.

Abubakar, however, tasked the group to avail the police any useful information regarding criminal activities of shylock contractors, saying: “We are law enforcement agents committed to enforcing the law. When you talk of building collapse, contractors knows the cause and should be held responsible. If they adhere to the rules, buildings will not collapse, rather, contractors want to cut corners to maximize profit which eventually lead to this kind of disasters we witness in the construction industry today.”

Lampooning the group, he warned that security wise, anybody whose building collapses, would be pursued by the police.

“Anybody selling sub-standard material will also face the full wrath of the law, we need information as quickly as possible in the construction industry,” he stressed.

Earlier, President of the group, Mr. Onuche Okoh, disclosed that over 75 building collapses were recorded in Nigeria in the last three years, lamenting that most Nigerians are unaware of the fact that the building requires to be re-enforced after 30 years.

Explaining reasons for the visit, he stated that: “We decide to embark on this visit because of the things happening in the country today. We are visiting security agencies so that they can support us, as we are looking into many ways contractors have failed. So we want to collaborate with them to ensure efficiency in our activities.”