THE DEVELOPMENT DILEMMA!

Monday

I had to go and see a developer today who had a road construction engineer with him, so I sat waiting for him to finish his meeting. I could not help but overhear their conversation, which had to do with the non completion of projects due to lack of funds.  It is clear that a lot of contractors are blamed for not completing their projects or completing them well, but what I gathered was that this is in many cases due to them not being paid by the various bodies that engaged them, whether at local, state or federal level.

This is a dilemma that is faced by many contractors, both big and small. It was also in the media that contractors may be owed over N100billion for projects they had been awarded.  Often these projects are left half completed, and in the rare instance that the project is completed before payment is received, the contractor goes bankrupt, staff are laid off and he is left with a bad bank loan and ruined name.

Tuesday

Developers are being urged by the government to seek planning information first and obtain approved development plans before commencing their building projects, as there are too many cases of dangerous building structures, which are collapsing on a daily basis. Moreover, these illegal structures are built too near roads, over canals and drains causing blockages and floods. The Lagos State Government has promised that from now on both building owners as well as the professionals responsible for monitoring and approving the projects, will be held accountable for breaches in building regulations.

It is worth noting that recently a fairly large estate towards the Lagos Ibadan Expressway was found to have been built without any approved layout or development plans!

Wednesday

It appears that Old Ikoyi is being transformed into an area predominantly filled with luxury high rises.  There is almost no street that does not have one or two multi storey block of flats. Every day a new one springs up, even more luxurious than the last. We must wait to see if they will stand the test of time. They almost always have swimming pools, gyms or squash/tennis courts (depending on the size of the land). Rent per unit usually starts from $65,000 (N10m) or sales from $750,000 (N120m+)

Thursday

More and more luxury top class international named hotels are being built on the Lagos Island, which is contrary to the perceived state of the economy. Yet if you visit these hotels every weekend, they are filled to the brim with visitors throwing parties, lodging there or just having a good time. Maybe it’s our way of distressing and coping with daily challenges. It would be great to see this amount of money and zeal, poured into building hospitals and schools.

Friday

I understand that it may cost the government about N40bn to roll out the proposed N5000 note? I am not a politician or expert on these matters, but as a lay man who is only interested in seeing some improvement in the living conditions of the ordinary man and our infrastructure, I can certainly do more for the populace with just half a billion! I could build an estate with affordable homes for the ordinary man on the street, serviced and managed by RSG Property Services!  Ahhh, If only wishes were horses…..

 

Until next week!