Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has stated that government plans and policies would impact significant impacts on Nigerians if professional bodies played active roles in their implementation.
Osinbajo, who made a reference to the Federal Government’s social housing scheme, said the programme would significantly impact more Nigerians if professional bodies such as the Nigerian Institute of Architects played an active role.
This was contained in a statement signed by his media aide, Laolu Akande, on Tuesday, where the Vice President was quoted as stating this when members of the NIA, led by its President, Arc. Enyi Ben-Eboh paid him a courtesy visit at the Presidential Villa on Monday.
“When we developed the Economic Sustainability Plan, it was part of our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We were very concerned about social housing, not just as a way of providing cheap housing for the poorest among us, but also as a way of providing jobs and job opportunities. But I am not so sure we got much response from [the] NIA,” Osinbajo stated.
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“One of the advantages of professional bodies like yours is to make it possible for a vast majority of our people to get decent housing, for instance, finding the cheapest ways of building 300,000 affordable houses.
“For the vast majority of Nigerians, the relevance of our professional institutions, especially when it comes to the design and building, must be felt when it comes to the basics. I certainly will like to see what sorts of contributions the NIA will make in developing policies around social housing.”
In his remarks, the President of the NIA, Ben-Eboh, while soliciting Osinbajo’s support for the body, commended the Federal Government for its contribution to the growth of Nigerian professionals by signing Executive Order 02 in 2017.
He said, “Without doubt, Executive Order 2 laid the foundation for the gradual take-off of our nation’s envisioned industrial diversification and self-sustaining economy with 100 per cent in-country capacity utilization and development.”
Ben-Eboh also announced that Osinbajo had been selected as the grand patron of the NIA’s Integrated Infrastructure Conference scheduled for October 2022.
Other members of the NIA delegation included 1st Vice President, Arc. Mobolaji Adeniyi; 2nd Vice President, Arc. Sani Saulawa; 3rd Vice President, Arc. Chioma Wogu-Ogbonna; General Secretary, and former President of the Institute, Arc. Chike Chamberlain Ibeanu; former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Obong Victor Attah; among others.
