Levi Oguike is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor who represented Owerri Federal Constituency in the Federal House of Representatives, Abuja (Owerri Municipal, Owerri West and Owerri North). He spoke to SABY ELEMBA on the issue of the increasing cases of building collapse in the country, saying that every structure should come under the planning authority and that only experts should handle structures to avoid structural failure. Excerpts:
From the point of view of a Chartered Quantity Surveyor, what do you think is responsible for the rampant collapse of buildings in Nigeria these days?
When we discuss the issue of building collapse or structural failure, there are several factors. I am a Chartered Quantity Surveyor, I practise in the industry I know and I know some of the factors. The critical elements are poor supervision, compliance in breach in-terms of specifications and the absence of tests. Ordinarily, when you are casting a structure- the concrete, the mix, the main cubes- these cubes are tested in the laboratory and to make sure that the mix is specified to meet the requirement of the load the engineer in the site envisaged that structure would carry. Because it is an engineering problem, he designs, he does the supervision, so if there is a collapse, it is either the design was faulty or there was a poor quality of material and materials could be steel re-enforcement and the concrete- the mix. So these are the basic things.
And the contractor who is the builder has also a responsibility to comply with the specifications in the contract document, the quality of concrete- the mix; these are specified for various elements of the structure.
Then this question of do it yourself is also a problem because people are cutting corners instead of hiring experts, qualified people to do the job. You find out that every Nigerian is now a contractor.
Even in the church, you find the pastors erecting structures, in that case they beat their chest, saying the church I built. Go and check, I do not know any church building that has gone through the process of certification. Go to the Ministry and get your building plans approved, though some churches have their management team but that is not enough.
Every structure should come under the planning authority; nobody should build without going through the process of the planning authority. But because there are so much corruptions everywhere that even that planning authority that is established to be the watchdog becomes a toll-gate for people to continue to make money for themselves.
I have served as a commissioner for lands in Imo State and I know my experience and I am sure I am the first commissioner to introduce public enquiry; so if you want to convert your building that is to change the purpose clause from residential to commercial or to a hotel or to whatever, it is no longer a director sitting there in the ministry to grant you approval. That would be advertised in daily newspapers, drawing the attention of people within that environment to come on a day appointed for that enquiry to raise objection or give approval.
So the professional bodies are represented and various interest groups come at that planning enquiry, so at the end of the conversation a note is taken, if people say yes it will not constitute public nuisance then of course the project can go ahead but if the vote is no, that is the end of the project. So, it is no longer in the hand of the director who will collect money from you and grant you approval.
Do people now go through this process including test of materials for the structure?
Well, only in some special cases depending on the agency that is the client. A Federal Government agency or State agency ought to insist on the test of these materials. You can test cubes, you can test the concrete, you can even test the blocks to see their crushing strength. Because if you are supposed to do a mix of 2-3-4 as the case may be instead of that you do 4-6-8 doubling it. It is not what you are supposed to do. There is a quantity of sand, gravel or aggregate that goes with a bag of cement. So the 50kg of cement supposed to go with a specified quantity of gravel or aggregate and sand as the case may be. And when these three are mixed that becomes a concrete and then is poured into a form work or space cast and the steel put in place also.
Even people do not care; there are small re-enforcement cubes. A cube is about one inch and it is tied to the steel so that the steel will not rest on the form work, or on the wood. The steel will be at the middle of the concrete but nobody cares to prepare those small cubes and place them. You find out the steel may lie flat on it and the weight my break it. Builders no longer comply with the specification.
What is the role of the Nigerian Institution of Quantity Surveyors to checking building collapse?
We have no hand in it because a quantity surveyor is a cost expert on construction works. We deal with the budget, the money to be spent which is the cost and it comes from the price to establish value, we are project managers of any project.
We prepare the procurement documents, the contract papers and then carry valuation to ensure the contract for money, to ensure value for money that the money invested by the contractor is commensurate with money paid to him in advance and make sure that he gets a fair share on the work done; at the end of it all, we prepare final account for both parties to close the contract.
Generally what is your advice?
You see the unfortunate thing in Nigeria is competence is penalised; people avoid investing in knowledge because knowledgeable people are not engaged. Everybody is a contractor. And in fact, even when you are ill, people give you prescription, everybody becomes a doctor. So what is important is that go out and look for a professional, somebody with experience and get proper advice because those who do not plan, plan to fail. They say those who bother about education should consider the cost of ignorance.
In my office, there is a mantra, “good managers are very expensive to maintain but bad ones cost even more”. So that is my advice, go for the best, look for the best and make sure you pay a fair price.
