Lagos builders' guild urges state to protect historic buildings
Written on
The Building Collapse Prevention Guild has asked Lagos State to back heritage recognition with funding, documentation and conservation rules, warning that neglect and uncontrolled development are erasing historic structures such as the Olusi Palace on Lagos Island.
The Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG) has called on the Lagos State government to strengthen efforts to preserve the state's historic structures, warning that neglect and uncontrolled urban development could erase important links to the city's past.
The guild's president, Alhaji Yusuf Sulaiman, and other built-environment professionals spoke at a seminar organised by the BCPG's Lagos Island branch to mark the 90th birthday of Prince Tajudeen Oluyole Olusi, head of the Olusi Royal House of Lagos, at the Olusi Palace. Sulaiman said the palace is among 23 heritage buildings identified on Lagos Island, and noted that the Lagos State Metropolitan Master Plan of 1980 and the state's 2009 strategic plan identified 43 heritage sites across Lagos, many of which have not received adequate attention.
Dr Abisoye Eleshin, a lecturer at the University of Lagos' Institute of African and Diaspora Studies, said the destruction of historic buildings goes beyond the loss of physical structures because it also wipes out the stories, traditions and collective memories attached to them. She urged planners and construction professionals to pay greater attention to traditional palaces, religious buildings and other structures that reflect the history of Lagos communities, rather than focusing only on prominent architectural landmarks.
Professor Olumide Adenuga advocated systematic documentation, regular structural assessments, appropriate repairs and sustainable funding to keep historic buildings standing, adding that suitable heritage properties could be adapted into museums, cultural centres and other public facilities without destroying their historical character.
Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr Olumide Olayinka Abiodun, responded to the concerns by outlining possible approaches to heritage protection, including government acquisition and management, and preservation restrictions. The guild's pioneer president, Builder Kunle Awobodu, said the palace also demonstrates the construction expertise of earlier generations, and that retaining such structures gives architecture, engineering and other built-environment students a chance to study traditional building techniques.
Prince Olusi, recalling the former splendour of the palace compound, said it once featured extensive gardens with apple, palm and coconut trees alongside hibiscus and roses, and appealed to the government to revisit earlier preservation plans.