It is hoped that some of the new policies and measures this new government must look at and take very seriously is our current housing problems, this ranges from land acquisition, building structures to management of estates and infrastructure. They need to put into place not just a “professional team” but one with the required expertise to improve the housing deficits and set in place workable regulations to guide its running’s. There is a severe housing deficit of affordable, decent homes. Everyone is a developer now, this has led to an oversupply of unaffordable poorly built properties everywhere there is available land. An in depth study should be made of the past president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez who died a few years ago. The people of his country are still in mourning for a man who put in place workable policies for the provision of decent, affordable homes for all those who cannot build or buy their own. Every year he successfully delivered hundreds of thousands new homes to grateful and citizens in need. His legacy continues after his death. He was a man on a mission to ensure that all his citizens were housed and provided for. You may wonder how he was able to do this. Venezuela, sits on vast oil reserves just like Nigeria, and this is being studiously utilized for the benefits of its people. Policies have been put in place for delivering a certain number of units of homes every year until everyone had a decent home to live in. The truth is that a man cannot achieve his potential in life without a roof over his head. It is proven that one of mans most basic needs apart from food is a roof over his head. In any society you will find the haves and the have not’s which vary in degrees depending on how organised or developed that society is or what policies are in place for the provision of homes for its less well off citizens.
In the UK, you are entitled to subsidised government provided homes if you are unemployed or on a low income. These homes are now usually of decent standards with clean running water, heating, electricity and safety provided as standard. Should these not be provided, the tenant has a right to complain and take that local Authority to court. In the United States it is basically the same. Therefore giving citizens opportunities to live healthily and improve themselves should they want to. Here in Lagos, there are a few areas where “low cost” homes are provided for residents, but they are in such poor conditions that living in these homes can often be more miserable than sleeping out in the open. They have no water, electricity, have not been maintained or repaired since they were built and offer no comfort whatsoever to its occupants. Due to the steady influx of people into Lagos State without any means or hope of affording decent accommodation, they find themselves sleeping in shanties, under the bridge, on the beach or in derelict buildings. These are the hidden homeless who seem to get along without any real hopes of affording to put a roof over their heads.
Even if we examine so called affluent areas, like Lekki1, Victoria Island, Ikoyi etc we can see that a lot of homes in these areas still lacks basics like roads, running water and electricity, the only difference is that they can afford to buy water and generators to make life easier in their luxury homes. In most developed or developing societies, infrastructure like good roads, power and water are put in place before homes are even built. But here in Nigeria the opposite is the case, we build the homes on un-motorable, flood prone areas or in the bush, without any water or electricity, and life just seems to go on as normal. No one raises an eyebrow or queries why homes are being built in these inaccessible areas. In some areas residents have to hire canoes or hire human beings to carry them through their flood ravaged streets. The lack of affordable good homes is a national problem that needs to be dealt with urgently. More and more high brow homes are being built for the high income earners without anything being provided for the masses. This is a something that needs urgent attention, but who will lead the way?
Caroline A. Akinlotan
