The Lagos State Government said it had not revoked all existing building permits as reported in some online media.
Mr Olaoye Olusegun, Director, Public Affairs, Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) made the clarification in a statement on Sunday in Lagos.
According to him, the report is untrue and misleading and should be disregarded.
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He said that the issuance of Planning Permit was the prerogative of the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority, which was under the supervision of the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development.
”The directive issued by the Special Adviser on eGIS and Urban Development, Dr Olajide Babatunde, is that Letters of Authorisation to commence construction, issued by the Lagos State Building Control Agency, needed to be revalidated,”he said.
According to him, most developers after obtaining the letter to commence construction fall short of engaging all relevant professionals in the building projects.
“The revalidation is to allow the agency to do proper audit and authentication of all the professionals that will be engaged in building construction in the State.
“Babatunde also disclosed that buildings under construction that had been abandoned for a long time needed to be re-certified before recommencement of construction to ascertain the structural stability of the building project.
“Babatunde directed that henceforth, nobody should sleep in buildings undergoing constructions and all construction work should not go beyond 7.00 pm everyday and there should be no building construction work on Sundays,”he said.
He also quoted him saying that property owners and developers should revalidate all letters of authorisation to commence building construction issued to them.
He said that Babatunde called on developers to always engage relevant professionals in the building environment.
Earlier reports
Punch had reported that the Lagos State Government had revoked all existing building permits and ordered builders to reapply for validation to continue construction.
The Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on e-GIS and Urban Development, Dr Olajide Babatunde, announced this during a visit to the collapsed building site in Maryland, Ikeja, on Saturday.
Babatunde was accompanied by Mr Gbolahun Oki, the General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, and some executive members.
He said, “All commencement certificates in Lagos are revoked effective immediately. This applies to everyone with a construction site, including those in the big five category.
“Return to the LASBCA office to revalidate that document. If you decide not to go for the revalidation of that documentation, we are going to seal that site.”
He expressed deep sorrow over the incident and emphasised that such occurrences should not happen.
Babatunde, who acknowledged the government’s responsibility in preventing building collapses, blamed property owners and developers for negligence and for violating building regulations.
