The Lagos State Government has accepted 26 recommendations
of the Toyin Ayinde-led panel that investigated the collapse of a 21-storey
building in the Ikoyi area of the state.
The Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led administration also
rejected two of the 28 recommendations of the panel.
In a White Paper seen on Wednesday,
the state government agreed with the recommendation of the panel 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.
The state government also accepted the recommendation of the
panel that the Developer of the collapsed property, Fourscore Heights Limited,
be prosecuted because of the loss of lives at the rubble.
The 21-storey building
which was located on Gerrard Road in Ikoyi collapsed on November 1, 2021. Still
standing beside the collapsed high-rise are two uncompleted 15-storey
buildings.
The collapsed 21-floor skyscraper, owned by Fourscore
Heights Limited, trapped over 50 persons, including the firm’s Managing
Director, Femi Osibona; his friend, a United States of America-based Nigerian
businessman, Wale Bob-Oseni; his personal assistant, Oyinye Enekwe, and
clients.
About 44 persons were said to have died as a result of the
incident, nine survivors were rescued from the rubble of the collapsed
building, while some artisans working in the building before it collapsed are
still missing.
Days after the ill-fated incident, while rescue operations
were still ongoing, Governor Sanwo-Olu declared that he had set up a panel to
investigate the collapse of the building.
On January 5, 2022, the Ayinde-led panel submitted its
report to the governor at the Lagos House, Ikeja. The chairman of the panel
(Ayinde) said the panel spent approximately six weeks on the assignment and
submitted the report as well as electronic recordings of all the sections and
videos of proceedings in a hard drive to the Lagos State Attorney-General,
Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN).
Ayinde said his panel visited the project site for a general
assessment, coordinated the activities of the consultants who conducted tests
on the site, received and reviewed documents from relevant ministries,
departments and agencies and conducted 35 interviews.
He said the panel interrogated 91 persons, requested and
received 21 memoranda and accessed the home of the late Chief Executive Officer
of Fourscore Heights Limited, Olufemi Osibona, with a view to gathering useful
documents.
Upon the receipt of the panel’s report Sanwo-Olu set up a
four-man committee led by the Commissioner for Special Duties, Tayo
Bamgbose-Martins, to produce a White Paper on the panel’s recommendation.
The Bamgbose-Martins-led committee subsequently tendered its
White Paper which is the position of the state government on the collapsed
building. While the state government accepted 26 of the 28 recommendations of
the panel, it rejected two.
Govt to sue Osibona’s company, prosecute culpable govt
officials
The Tribunal’s
recommendations partly read, “The Developer, having been negligent, should
forfeit the Project Site to the LASG in accordance with Section 25(4) of the
Revised LABSCA Regulation 2019
“The Developer, Fourscore Heights Limited should be
prosecuted because of the loss of lives involved.
“Based on Structural Diagnostics Survey Report, annexed as
Schedule 2 to this Report, and in the interest of the safety of lives in the
environment, the Tribunal recommends, that the existing 2 Nos. 15 storey
buildings should be demolished using the controlled demolition technique in
order to reduce the effect of the demolition on the surrounding buildings and
avoid self and uncontrolled collapse. In addition, the Tribunal also recommends
evacuation of all occupants within a 45m radius from the extreme boundaries of
the blocks in the interest of public safety while arrangements are made for the
controlled demolition.
“The various participants should face disciplinary action
and prosecution as applicable.
“The civil public servants found culpable should face the
civil service disciplinary panel and prosecution where applicable.
“There would be need to take a serious decision on what to
do to those who use their political weight to harass and intimidate career
civil servants who are merely discharging their statutory functions.”
In its comments, the state government agreed with all the
recommendations stated above.
“Lagos State Government agrees with this recommendation and
will forward to the Office of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice
to institute appropriate charges against Fourscore Heights Limited.
“Lagos State Government agrees with this recommendation and
will forward to the relevant Ministry, Department or Agency to take necessary
steps provided by law to carry out the controlled demolition of the two
remaining Blacks A and B in an effective and safe manner,” the White Paper
partly read.
The state government also agreed that the various
participants should face disciplinary action and prosecution as applicable. The
government said the Attorney General of Lagos State will initiate the process
of prosecution for all erring actors.
It, however, said the prosecution of the government
officials that acted on the 2019 approval of the building will first be done by
the Personnel Management Board. “The disciplinary process for civil servants
has to first be done through Personnel Management Board in line with the Public
Service Rules. The disciplinary process is to be set up immediately and
concluded within fourteen (14) days,” the White Paper added.
Our correspondent learnt that culpable government officials
including three town planners and civil servants will be prosecuted for lying
under oath, and for using a private consulting company to create a fake
approval that the building was good to go.
Other recommendations of the panel welcomed by the
government include that the Lagos State Building Control Agency should be the
only agency authorised to seal up buildings short of standards and that all
other monitoring agencies should go through the LASBCA to seal any project in
the state.
Others are that the regulatory authority should be
well-staffed, material testing laboratory should be adequately funded and
equipped, the National Building Code for Nigeria should be domesticated and
that the individuals and companies found wanting in the building collapse
should be referred to their professional bodies including the Council for the
Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria.
The panel also recommended the creation of a committee
comprising public and private sector to approve buildings above four floors but
the government rejected the recommendation, saying instead of four floors, it
should be from six floors. The panel also said a government official should be
sanction for overbearing attitude but the government discarded it, saying it is
nebulous.
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