The Director-General, Dr Ifeanyi Chukwunonso Okeke, has said the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) has rolled out over 168 standards since 2004 for contractors to implement in the construction sector, with stiffer regulation to tackle the menace of building collapse in the country.
The director general stated this over the weekend in Abuja at a training for journalists organised by the SON where he reiterated the need for a comprehensive approach to prevent recurring incidents of building collapse in the country.
Okeke, who was represented by the Director of Public Relations department of SON, Mrs Foluso Bolaji, stated that compliance to Specifications and Codes of Practice in the Standards by regulators and service providers in the sector plays an important role in reinstating the eroding confidence of Nigerians in the Nigerian building industry.
He said following investigations carried out by the SON, “The cause of incessant building collapse was attributed to poor structural designs, quackery and unprofessionalism and inadequate or lack of soil testing.
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“The last building collapse in the Kubwa area of the FCT showed that the building was approved for just a room or two but the owner developed more rooms for commercial purposes which led to the collapse, and we have many more cases like that,” she said.
SON also reiterated its commitment to ensuring standards of Nigerian products exported abroad to avoid the persistent cases of export rejects.
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