The Council for the Regulatory of Engineering in Nigeria has set up a Regulatory Monitoring Teams in 15 States of the Federation to check incessant building and roads collapses in the states.
The President of the council, Ali Rabiu, disclosed this while speaking with newsmen in Kano on Saturday.
He said the council found it necessary to take the measure so as to check loss of lives and property due the building collapses which has almost become a daily phenomenon in the country.
“We are worried about the collapses with roads leading to the killings of more Nigerians than building’s but because buildings are the ones that People see, they often talk about it,” Rabiu said.
The COREN president said that one of their core mandates was the proper monitoring of projects to safeguard the interests of Nigerians and better the economy adding they will not relent in ensuring the strict adherence to the rules and regulations governing construction projects.
Rabiu explained that they established the Engineering Regulatory Monitoring Department in each Bureaucracy which allowed for the subsequent setting up of the Engineering Regulatory Monitoring Teams in all the 36 States and Abuja.
He added that the ERM are structured in the way that they have States Ethical Committees who implement policies enacted by the National Technical Committee, and alongside them they have Inspectors in the five identified sectors of Civil, Mechanical, Electrical and Agricultural Sectors.
Rabiu said, “Already we have these ERM and Inspectors in 15 States of the Federation and we are hoping that before the end of the year, we will effectively cover the 36 and Abuja.
“The aim is to ensure effective monitoring of projects where the Government is putting its money including Privately owned projects.
“And the major reasons are to stem the tide of Engineering Failures generally including Roads not only Building so that the lives of Nigerians would be safeguarded and allow for economic growth and development.”
He noted that before 2019 the Council lacked powers to punish any violator except those on their register and even at that the punishment was suspension from practice and deregistering.
“But today, the Law is being amended allowing them to sanction any Nigerian whether Engineer or not who commits infraction in Engineering practice and these punishments include imprisonment and for practitioners their Licenses could be withdrawn,” he said.
