Rivers denies approving collapsed five-storey building

The Rivers State Government has denied approving the building plan for a five-storey structure that collapsed in Port Harcourt, resulting in one death and three injuries. Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Edward Hart, stated that the building plan was actually approved by the Federal Housing Authority.

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It’s a straight one. When a building plan is approved, always ensure that you keep to the approved plan. Don’t go outside the plan. As long as you keep to the approved plan, use quality materials and qualified personnel at your construction site, the building will definitely be intact.

Hart described the incident as unfortunate and stressed the importance of property developers strictly adhering to approved building plans. There are claims that the structure was initially approved as a three-storey hotel but was later extended to five floors without proper authorization. This marks the second building collapse in the state within a week, following a similar incident with a three-storey building in the Rumuelumeni area that did not cause casualties.

The state government intends to intensify monitoring and take action against buildings erected without approval. Hart reiterated that the collapsed building on Odili Road did not receive state government approval. He emphasized that developers must stick to approved plans, use quality materials, and employ qualified personnel to ensure building integrity.

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This building that collapsed was approved by the Federal Housing Authority. They approved it. They were even at the site. I’ll go further to state that the recent collapse of buildings calls for an urgent review of the civil construction site.

He noted that recent collapses highlight the need for an urgent review of the construction sector. Hart called for stronger collaboration between the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development and professional bodies. This collaboration aims to tighten approval processes, eliminate unqualified individuals, prevent the use of substandard materials, and ensure close supervision of building projects.

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This will require tighter control of the approval processes to enable the elimination of quacks and use of sub-standard materials and personnel in building projects, in addition to close and regular supervision by the ministry.

Hart attributed some collapses to non-compliance with approved plans and the use of substandard materials. He pointed out that even with monitoring, some engineers and contractors use inferior materials, which remains a persistent challenge.

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Even when they comply, at times you will realise that some of them, especially the engineers who are supervising and all that use sub-standard materials in carrying out this construction work. This has always been a challenge, even when they are being monitored.