Building collapse has been on the rise in Nigeria over the years, leading to injury, loss of life, and property damage. The National Chairman of the Nigerian Institute of Civil Engineers (NICE), during the institute's workshop titled Stemming the Tide of Building Collapse Menace in Nigeria” held in May 2024 in Abuja, said Nigeria recorded 41 building collapses in 17 months. More disturbing is that in only July 2024, three building collapses have been reported—in Mushin, Lagos; Kubwa, Abuja; and a school in Jos, Plateau—where 22 people were said to have been killed. Immediate action must be taken to stem the tide.

It is common practice to see housing construction being undertaken by non-qualified professionals. In a bid to save money, many people build their houses without using the necessary professionals. Additionally, some developers, in their quest to maximise profit, employ only some of the services of the required professionals; relying largely on artisans. The architect, civil engineer, quantity surveyor, project manager, etc, all have crucial roles in building construction. Any compromise in their roles could lead to poor construction design, faulty construction, poor quality control, and ultimately building collapse. For example, constructing a house without properly considering the soil texture can lead to fatal results in the future.

Another significant factor that leads to building collapse is the compromise in the quality and quantity of materials used. This may be done by the contractor in charge of the construction to maximize profit, or even by the site engineer or workers who may exchange quality materials procured with substandard ones or sell some of the materials procured for the construction for personal gain. Hence, there is a need for effective monitoring.

To win a bid, some contractors submit very low quotations, which they know cannot properly support the construction of the buildings they are bidding for. The practice of choosing the lowest bidder for building contracts by default should not be encouraged. The lowest bidder sometimes may be the least experienced or one who is out to compromise standards.

The age of a building also contributes to its collapse. Just like anything in the world, buildings do expire if they are not reinforced through extensive rehabilitation, which is beyond regular renovation. This is often an expensive task, especially for high-rise buildings, and hence is sometimes overlooked.

Government (federal, state, and local, as applicable) should begin to undertake integrity tests on any building that is more than one storey high, especially those in public use. As a matter of policy, such checks should be periodic. Any building found defective, where remedial work cannot salvage it, should be pulled down. Subsequently, any building more than one storey high should be certified habitable by the relevant government agency before being put into use. Anyone engaged in substandard building practices should be sanctioned. All building codes should be enforced.

Professional bodies like the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) Nigerian Institute of Civil Engineers (NICE), and the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) should sanction members who cut corners and compromise standards. They should also monitor the activities of their members from time to time; this will serve as a deterrent to unwholesome practices. There is also a need to create public awareness about the importance of engaging registered professionals in building.

Proper supervision of construction projects by sponsors and project site managers is crucial to ensure adherence to specifications and prevent the occurrence of sharp practices. It is also recommended that professional project managers be engaged to ensure the successful completion of projects.

The Standard Organisation of Nigeria should ensure that substandard building materials are neither domestically produced nor imported for use. They should also conduct random, unannounced inspections of building material vendors to check for substandard items that may have entered the market.

Nigeria needs to take deliberate actions to stop the issue of building collapse. People should be encouraged to engage registered professionals in their building construction. Professional bodies have a role to play in checking the conduct of their members and sanctioning those who err. By fostering a culture of adherence to standards and professional integrity, Nigeria can mitigate the risk of building collapses and ensure the safety of its citizens.

Kenechukwu Aguolu 

Abuja, Nigeria

The Osun State Government has issued a public alert on the security breach of Governor Ademola Adeleke‘s official telephone number.

The compromised number, +234 803 365 7555, is reported to have been hacked, leading to potential fraudulent communications being sent from it.

In a statement released by the Governor’s spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the public has been strongly advised to disregard any calls or messages received from the hacked number.

“Members of the public should ignore any such communications as they are not authorized by the Governor,” Rasheed emphasized.

The state government is actively taking measures to address the breach and restore security to the Governor’s communication channels.

An investigation into the incident is underway, and efforts are ongoing to prevent future occurrences.

Residents and officials have been urged to report any suspicious activities or interactions related to the compromised number.

The government promises to keep the public updated as they work to resolve the situation and strengthen security measures around the Governor’s telecommunications.

Naija News understands that this is not the first time the phone number of a state Governor will be hacked as the Cross Rivers State Governor, Bassey Otu, on the 11th of February, 2023, saw his phone numbers hacked by criminals.

[Naijanews]

The Federal Government has  announced the release of  results of the 2024 National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) into Unity Colleges and Federal Government Academy (FGA), Suleja.

NCEE is for admission into Junior Secondary School (JSS 1) of Federal Unity Colleges and this year’s edition was written on Saturday, June 1, 2024 in Nigeria, Benin Republic and Togo.

Minister of State for Education, Dr Tanko Sununu,  while announcing the results on Tuesday in Abuja said, 71,291 candidates registered for the 2024 NCEE and 66,931 candidates sat for the examination, while 4,360 were absent.

He said: “Out of the maximum obtainable score of 210, one candidate obtained the highest score of 203, while 13 candidates obtained the lowest score of 1”

Sununu noted that this year, 52 candidates (2 candidates from Lagos State and 50 candidates from Rivers State) were involved in examination malpractice.

[DailyTrust]

The Supreme Court judgement on July 11, granting financial autonomy to the 774 local councils and recognising them as the third tier of Nigeria’s governance architecture, was truly historic. It was perhaps the most remarkable judgement ever delivered by the apex court in recent times, as it used its power to interpret the law to give a different meaning to Section 162 of the Constitution.

Since 1999, governors have used this section to withhold and tamper with the funds federally allocated to the councils, using a joint account that has proven to be a honeypot of abuse.

Last Thursday, the Supreme Court described the payment of the allocations to the account as gross misconduct and scolded the governors for dissolving democratically elected councils and setting up caretaker committees.

The court ruled that caretaker committees are illegal and that councils run by them should not receive the federal allocation.

Henceforth, the court ruled that the allocations should go directly to the accounts of the 774 local councils.

Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read the lead judgment, said Nigeria runs a three-tier governance structure, where no one tier is subject to the whims and caprices of the other. He criticised the governors and the state assemblies for almost allowing the councils to go into extinction with their treatment of them.

The judgment was generally well received by Nigerians. According to reports, the verdict ignited jubilation by workers in some local councils as they sang the praises of the Tinubu administration.

The Kano State Government on Tuesday filed fresh charge against former governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje.

In the charge sheet with case No. K/143c/24, the state government accused Ganduje and erstwhile Commissioner for Justice, Musa Lawan, of Criminal Conspiracy, and misappropriation contrary to Section 308 and punishable under Section 309 of the Penal Code (as amended) CAP 105, Vol. 2, the Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.

The offence, the state government said, is contrary punishable under Section 97 and Section 315.

The state government accused Ganduje and Lawan of abuse of office.

In the charge sheet, the state government said it intends to present four witnesses.

No date has been fixed for the arraignment.

[DailyPost]

Another member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ekene Abubakar Adams, has reportedly died. 

Adams, who represented Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency in Kaduna State as a first-time member, reportedly died after a protracted illness. 

Until he died on Tuesday morning, he was the Chairman of the House Committee on Sports.

An ex-footballer with Remo Stars, he was once a General Manager of Kada City Football Club of Kaduna and elected on the platform of the Labour Party during the last general election. 

He is the second member of the House to die within the last seven days after Hon. Akinremi Olaide representing Ibadan North and the fourth member to die since the inauguration of the House in June 2023.

As at the time of filing this report, the House spokesman, Hon. Akintunde Rotimi and the Chairman of the Kaduna caucus, Hon. Amos Gwamna Magaji could not be reached for confirmation. 

Nigeria’s inflation narratives took a controversial twist yesterday as the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA), gives its own figure contradicting that of the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, by a wide margin.

The NBS had released its Consumer Price Index, CPI, for June 2024 reporting that headline inflation rate increased by 0.24 percentage points to 34.19 per cent in June from 33.95 percent in May.
But when contacted by Vanguard for his comment, the President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Kelvin Oye, simply said, “Inflation is over 90 percent”, without giving further details.

Giving its own details NBS, also said that food inflation grew to 40.87 percent in June from 40.66 percent in May 2024 due to increase in the prices of millet whole grain, garri, guinea corn, etc (bread and cereals class), yam, wateryam, cocoyam, potatoes, yam & other tubers class, among other food items.

Meanwhile, financial analysts said the NBS’ figures outstripped both the individual and consensus forecasts.

NBS stated: “In June 2024, the headline inflation rate increased to 34.19 percent relative to the May 2024 headline inflation rate which was 33.95 percent.

“Looking at the movement, the June 2024 headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.24 percentage points when compared to the May 2024 headline inflation rate.

“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 11.4 percentage points higher compared to the rate recorded in June 2023, which was 22.79 percent.

“This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in the month of June 2024 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e. June 2023).

“The rise in Food inflation on a year-on-year basis was caused by increases in prices of the following items: Millet Whole grain, Garri, Guinea corn, etc (Bread and Cereals Class), Yam, Water Yam, Coco Yam (Potatoes, Yam & Other Tubers Class), Groundnut Oil, Palm Oil, etc (Oil & Fats Class) and Catfish Dried, Dried Fish-Sadine, Mudfish (Fish Class), etc.

According to NBS, in June food inflation on a year-on-year basis was highest in Edo (47.34 percent), Kogi (46.37 percent), Cross River (45.28 percent), while Nasarawa (34.31 percent), Bauchi (34.78 percent) and Adamawa (35.96 percent), recorded the slowest rise in food inflation on year-on-year basis.

Monetary policy is failing- Adonri

Reacting, David Adonri, Analyst and Executive Vice Chairman at Highcap Securities Limited, said : “Despite all the measures taken by CBN, inflation rate continues to rise. Continued application of monetary policy to tackle this kind of stubborn inflation is failing because what is required is not demand management but supply side fiscal policy.

“Should the monetary authority react by hiking interest rate again, it will further increase yield on debt and cause financial assets to migrate more to debt. This may harm ongoing recapitalization exercise of banks. Rising inflation is not good news for equities.”

Commenting on the further rise in inflation, analysts at Comercio Partners said: “Looking ahead, food inflation, the main driver, is expected to taper off because of the short-term federal government’s recent interventions, with a N2 trillion packages announced by Abubakar Kyari, the minister for Agriculture and Food Security, to curb rising prices and speed up stabilization and growth.

“Also, a 150-day duty-free import window has been approved, allowing tariff-free importation of maize, husked brown rice, wheat, and cowpeas through land and sea borders. This measure, with imported commodities subject to a Recommended Retail Price (RRP), aims to provide immediate relief.

“However, tackling food inflation long-term means addressing underlying issues like transportation and logistics challenges, harvest losses, and regional insecurity. Moreover, discussions around raising the minimum wage could further fuel inflationary pressures.

“On the monetary front, recent interest rate hikes have helped combat inflation, but another hike seems unlikely because of tight macroeconomic environment.

“However, a focus should shift towards addressing the root causes of inflation without stifling economic growth.”

Also commenting, analysts at CardinalStone Finance stated: “The June CPI data indicated that inflation leapt by 24 bases points (bps) to 34.2% YoY, missing analysts’ average consensus of 33.94% and our projection of 33.90%. “Our tamer inflation expectation, based on the stability in the foreign exchange (FX) market was overshadowed by a more pronounced food inflation.

“We perceive that the food basket is still grappling with an uptick in input costs and persisting insecurities in the review period, thus propping up prices.

“The outlook for July’s inflation is likely to be mixed on the back of multiple factors. On upside risk, we expect the recent PMS scarcity and another electricity tariff hike for ‘Band A’ users to increase price pressure.

“Furthermore, FX volatility will likely be prevalent in July, stemming from increased FX demand for vacation and payment of foreign tuition fees.

“While these highlighted factors are expected to increase inflationary risk, we anticipate the base effect to sufficiently moderate YoY inflation.

“Moreover, the government’s decision to suspend duties, tariffs, and taxes on the importation of certain commodities like Maize, husked brown rice, Wheat, and cowpeas for the next 150 days is expected to lead to lower food prices. “The government’s plan to import 250,000MT of Wheat and 250,000MT of Maize also bodes well for the food price outlook, providing a positive counterbalance to the inflationary risks. “Overall, we expect headline inflation to moderate by 50bps to 33.7%.
“In light of the above, we expect the monetary policy authority to maintain its hawkish stance and hike the policy rate by 50 to 100bps in its July meeting”.

In his own comment Clifford Egbomeade, Public Policy Analyst and Communication expert, said: “The rise in Nigeria’s inflation rate to 34.19% in June 2024 has several significant implications for the economy. First, it reduces the purchasing power of consumers, making goods and services more expensive and diminishing the standard of living, particularly for low and middle-income households. This increased cost of living can exacerbate economic hardship and potentially push more people into poverty.”

“High inflation also creates economic uncertainty, which can deter both local and foreign investment. Investors are likely to be cautious in such an environment, leading to reduced investment and slower economic growth. “Moreover, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) may be compelled to further raise interest rates to control inflation, which increases borrowing costs for businesses and consumers, potentially further slowing down economic activities.

“To address rising inflation, the government and the CBN should consider a combination of monetary and fiscal measures. Tightening monetary policy can help curb excessive money supply, although this must be done carefully to avoid stifling economic growth. Implementing prudent fiscal policies, such as reducing fiscal deficits and improving tax collection, is also crucial. Investing in supply-side interventions, such as supporting local production and reducing import dependency, can help stabilize prices in the long run”.

[Vanguard]

The Federal Government has repatriated 190 stranded Nigerians from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Bashir Garga, the National Emergency Management Agency’s (NEMA) zonal director in the North Central, on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said that the returnees were received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Tuesday at 5:57 a.m.

He said the returnees were received by a combined team of government officials led by NEMA.

He said that the returnees were profiled and documented by the relevant agencies and sensitised to behave with decorum and responsibility on their return to Nigeria.

“The Federal Government urges all Nigerians, wherever they may be, to act as exemplary ambassadors of their country, by upholding the fundamental values of patriotism, rule of law, decency, and integrity,” the statement says.

(NAN)

Donald Trump has picked JD Vance, a senator from Ohio, as his running mate for the presidential election.

Vance, a one-time Trump critic turned loyal ally, is now the first millennial to join a major party ticket at a time of deep concern about the advanced age of America’s political leaders.

“I’m a ‘never Trump’ guy. I never liked him,” the 39-year-old had once said in an interview in 2016.

“My God what an idiot.

“I find him reprehensible.”

However, Vance became one of Trump’s steadfast allies a few years later, aligning himself with the former president’s ideology on trade, immigration, and foreign policy, particularly the US’ continued support for Ukraine.

“After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network, as the Republican national convention (RNC) got underway in Milwaukee.

Vance had accused President Joe Biden of playing a role in the attempted Trump assassination of Saturday.

“The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs,” Vance posted on X hours after the shooting.

“That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”

Reacting to Vance’s selection, Biden described the senator as a “clone of Trump”. Other Democrats have portrayed him the same way.

The former president said he has shelved plans to speak on how the US has regressed under Biden at the ongoing RNC.

Trump said he now wants to speak about overcoming the political divide in the country.

[TheCable]

A legal firm, Falana Chambers, has written to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) warning the commission against recognizing Julius Abure as the Acting National Chairman of the Labour Party.

The firm, which represents the National Transition Committee of the Labour Party, stated that Abure’s tenure has expired and any further recognition would be in violation of a Federal High Court judgment in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/IC/866/2014 between Labour Party & 3 Ors Vs Com. Salisu Muhammed, and an INEC-brokered agreement of June 27, 2022.

The letter, dated July 4, 2024, and signed by Marahal Abubakar, LP, requested that INEC desist from fraternizing with Abure and his cohorts, and restrain officials from undermining the administration of justice and respect for the rule of law.

The firm attached a report of the mediated settlement and a certified true copy of the Federal High Court judgment to the letter.

The letter noted that the Labour Party has not conducted any election for over four years, contravening Section 233(1)(a) and (2)(a) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, read alongside Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022. It also emphasized that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is the platform of the Labour Party, and that the party has been unable to conduct elections due to the expired tenure of Abure and his National Working Committee.

The legal firm warned that failure to comply with the request will lead to contempt proceedings against the INEC Chairman at the Federal High Court. The letter stated, “TAKE NOTICE that unless you comply with the foregoing request forthwith, we shall approach the Federal High Court and institute contempt proceedings against you.”

[OpinionNigeria]