President, Association of Building Artisans of Nigeria (ASBAN), Mr Jimmy Oshinubi has called for stiffer tariffs on imported construction and building materials.
Oshinubi made the call during an interview with journalists in Lagos on Wednesday.
According to him, the call has become imperative so as to “ encourage patronage of locally produced building materials, foster growth in the construction material market and provide employment opportunities”.
President, Association of Building Artisans of Nigeria (ASBAN), Mr Jimmy Oshinubi has called for stiffer tariffs on imported construction and building materials.
Oshinubi made the call during an interview with journalists in Lagos on Wednesday.
According to him, the call has become imperative so as to “ encourage patronage of locally produced building materials, foster growth in the construction material market and provide employment opportunities”.
Oshinubi also said that stiffer import duties on some building materials would help to address the problem of importation of substandard and inferior materials.
He said that there was the need to change the mindset of Nigerians about their preference for imported construction materials.
The construction expert said that some locally made construction materials were of higher quality than imported ones.
He said that preference for imported materials was prevalent in the building and construction sector, adding that Nigerians should be discouraged against this tendency.
The ASBAN president said the increasing incidence of collapse buildings was due to the use of substandard materials.
“Though other factors are responsible for building collapse too, but the use of substandard materials is a major factor.
“The mistake of a doctor can terminate life of one person, but when a building collapses, lives of thousands can be lost.
“This is why great attention needs to be paid to the quality of materials we use in the building and construction sector,” he said.
Oshunbi called for greater collaboration between professionals and government in the fight to rid the country of fake, inferior and substandard products.
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