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Group lauds development authority’s intervention in Aba distressed building demolition – EnviroNews
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The Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy and Development (FENRAD), an environmental advocacy and accountability watchdog, has commended the Greater Aba Development Authority (GADA) for its swift and professional intervention in ordering the controlled demolition of the distressed four-storey residential building located at No. 71, Clifford Road, Aba, Abia State, following expert findings that the structure posed an imminent risk of collapse due to severe foundation defects.
FENRAD applauded the prompt response of GADA’s Building Control Unit, Engineering Department, and Town Planning Department for immediately conducting a structural assessment, safely evacuating all occupants, securing the area, and initiating measures for a controlled demolition to prevent loss of lives and minimise damage to neighbouring properties.
Comrade Nelson Nnanna Nwafor, Executive Director, FENRAD, said in a statement that this proactive action reflects responsible governance and demonstrates the critical importance of effective building control, regulatory oversight, and prioritising public safety.
“While this timely intervention has averted what could have become another national tragedy, it also exposes serious concerns regarding the structural integrity of many aging, poorly maintained, and improperly constructed buildings across Aba and other urban centres in Abia State.
“The incident should serve as a wake-up call for government institutions, developers, professionals in the built environment, and property owners to strengthen compliance with building regulations and safety standards.”
He pointed out that Nigeria has, over the years, witnessed numerous tragic building collapse incidents that have claimed hundreds of lives, destroyed investments, displaced families, and eroded public confidence in regulatory institutions.
“These unfortunate incidents continue to reveal recurring problems such as substandard construction materials, inadequate soil investigations, poor engineering designs, weak foundations, unauthorized structural alterations, poor workmanship, corruption in the building approval process, and inadequate monitoring by regulatory authorities. The situation demands urgent and sustained reforms rather than reactive responses after disasters occur.”
FENRAD therefore called on the Abia State Government and GADA to immediately commence a comprehensive structural integrity audit of high-rise buildings and other public-use structures across Aba and the entire state.
The group added that priority attention should be given to residential apartments, schools, hospitals, markets, shopping plazas, hotels, worship centres, office complexes, and other buildings with high human occupancy, particularly older structures or those already showing signs of structural distress.
“Preventive engineering assessments will help identify vulnerabilities before they develop into catastrophic failures,” submitted FENRAD, urging the Abia State Government to strengthen the institutional capacity of GADA and other relevant agencies by increasing technical manpower, improving inspection mechanisms, providing modern monitoring equipment, and ensuring strict enforcement of the Abia State building regulations and physical planning laws without fear or favour.
FENRAD recommended that the government should:
- Conduct routine structural integrity assessments of existing public and private buildings.
- Enforce compulsory geotechnical (soil) investigations and structural certification before approval of multi-storey developments.
- Digitise building approval, inspection, and compliance systems to enhance transparency and reduce opportunities for manipulation.
- Establish an independent Building Safety Review Committee comprising structural engineers, architects, builders, town planners, geologists, quantity surveyors, and environmental experts to periodically evaluate buildings considered high-risk.
- Create a dedicated emergency reporting platform through which residents can confidentially report cracks, foundation failures, illegal structural modifications, or other signs of building distress.
- Impose strict administrative and legal sanctions on developers, contractors, consultants, or public officials found guilty of negligence, professional misconduct, or violations of building standards.
FENRAD also called on relevant professional bodies, including the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA), the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria (CORBON), and the Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria (TOPREC), to work closely with government agencies in promoting ethical practice, professional accountability, quality assurance, and continuous monitoring of construction activities across the state.
FENRAD equally urged regulatory agencies to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the immediate and underlying causes of the structural failure at No. 71 Clifford Road. Such investigation, it added, should examine the adequacy of the structural design, quality of construction materials, foundation integrity, compliance with approved building plans, supervision during construction, and whether all statutory approvals and inspections were properly carried out.
