FHA boss asks estates’ residents to imbibe maintenance culture

The Managing Director of the Federal Housing Authority, FHA, Professor Mohammed Al-Amin, has called on allottees, residents and managers of estates across the federation to imbibe maintenance culture.
Al-Amin ,who said this in Abuja while speaking with journalists, decried lack of maintenance culture in its various estates by residents and allottees in the estates across the country.
“We have a young population that is growing by the day, if we maintain our estates very well, we will be building to add to the stock of supply housing and thereby making houses more available.
“Maintenance culture is very important because it helps to elongate the duration of a house.
”If a housing project is designed to last 200 years, if you maintain it appropriately, then it will reach that 200 years that it is designed for.
“But if you do not maintain it properly, then before you know it after five or six years, it will start to dilapidate.
“So, it is important to have good maintenance culture in order to achieve the longevity of the projects, ‘’ he said.
Al-Amin, however, said that maintenance culture had two phases, which include the responsibility that was needed by the citizens and also the one that rests squarely on the managers.
He added that no matter how high level of maintenance the managers of estate houses would want to achieve; without cooperation from stakeholders, there would be no headway.
“If the citizens, residents are not interested or cooperating, definitely you will not get what is required of you.
“ So , t h e c o o p e r a t i o n o f stakeholders, particularly the allottees and residents of estates is very important and key in maintenance culture.
“The managers must also be up and doing no matter how the residents and the stakeholders in the estates are interested to maintaining their facilities, utility and services.
“If the managers are not up and doing, they will not achieve it,‘’ AlAmin said.
He also noted that the FHA was enhancing its services by retraining staff in order to attain the highest level of standard based on the International Best Practices.
T h e Ma n a g i n g Di re c t o r, therefore, called for the cooperation of Nigerians in safeguarding the master plans of the estates across the country.
“If a particular location is earmarked for road, please no matter how dear that place is for whatever you want to do with it, please leave it for a road.
He said that any undeveloped area in the estates, had a purpose either for environmental protection, emergency purposes or for greenery and other uses.
Al-Amin maintained that building on designated open spaces was wrong, urging the residents of estates to assist in maintaining the drains provided by government in the estates.
“If there is huge or heavy amount of garbage in the drains, if you cannot do it as a responsible citizen, please inform the nearest FHA office and we would come immediately and do it,” he added.
“So, it is a collaboration between different sectors of the society but definitely, it is more cost effective to imbibe the maintenance culture than to be building without maintaining it,” he said.

 

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