The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development in Lagos State, Toyin Ayinde on Tuesday said that several housing projects the State was working on were not “low cost housing estates” as they had been labelled, emphasising that the houses were going to be affordable to the citizens.
Ayinde, who was a guest on Sunrise Daily, on Tuesday, said: “Lagos State hasn’t published that it is developing low cost housing, because indeed there is no low cost cement, there is no low cost iron rod, there are no low cost building materials, therefore, what we have said is that we are embarking on affordable housing.”
The houses, which are located in different areas of the State, cost between 3.5 million Naira and 15 million Naira. However, the commissioner described the houses as affordable, explaining that buyers would be able “to access a mortgage system that runs on an interest rate that has never been presented to stakeholders before.”
He also explained that the cost of building the houses would determine the purchase price.
On the Ilubirin project, Ayinde said actual construction was yet to commence on the site, disclosing that the project which would have houses of 7 floors, was yet to have a price.
There had been complains about the location of the project which is close to a high tension cable, but the commissioner said that the required setback had been adhered to and that those who had concluded that the State government was building under such a cable were being mischievous.
“For that grade of high tension cable, it’s a 46 meters corridor… that has been factored into the project,” he said.
He further explained that the estate was 2.5 meters above sea level and would not contribute to flood issues. “It was sand-filled before I got to government in July 2011 so whoever is saying it will contribute to flooding is not saying the truth,” he said.
On the latest building collapse in Oworonshoki area of Lagos, the Commissioner explained that it was due to bad construction. He noted that the agency had initially sealed off the site but the contractors had broken the seal to continue working.
