Ikoyi collapsed building: Sanwo-Olu gets panel’s report, set up committee 

By Lukman Olabiyi

The Tribunal of Inquiry set up by the Lagos State government to investigate the cause of the collapsed 21-Storey Ikoyi structure on Gerrard Road, yesterday, submitted its report to the state governor.

The report was submitted by the Chairman of the Tribunal, Mr. Toyin Ayinde, to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, at the Lagos House, Ikeja.

The tribunal was set up as a result of  the collapsed 21-Storey Ikoyi structure on Gerrard Road which occurred on November 1, 2021 and claimed over 40 lives.

Following the sad incident, Governor Sanwo-Olu on November 4,  2021 set up the panel to unravel the misery behind the incident and make  recommendations to prevent future reoccurrence.

After receiving the report yesterday, Governor Sanwo-Olu, set up a four-man committee to be led by the Commissioner for Special Duties, Mr Tayo Bamgbose-Martins, an engineer, as a first step to the implementation of the report submitted by the Panel, which investigated the collapse of a 21-storey structure on Gerrard Road in Ikoyi.

Other members of the committee are Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola; Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General, Mr. Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN) and his Agriculture counterpart, Ms. Abisola Olusanya, who is an architect.

While presenting the report to the governor, Ayinde said members of the Tribunal took up the responsibility with the greatest sense of humility,  and discharged the duty to it’s best ability.

He said though people expressed doubts on the ability of the tribunal to be fair in it’s investigation, he said the tribunal was fair in it’s report as it considered all issues and documents fairly.

“While members of the tribunal recognize that we may not have been here because we are the best, we understand that we have only been presented with an opportunity to make a difference. We therefore seek protection as members of this tribunal to be seen as having discharged this assignment to the best of our ability, without sentiments, and that we have acted based on the documents that were made available to us, as well as the information gathered from all the witnesses who appeared before the tribunal,” the chairman said.

In the course of the investigation, the tribunal, according to the chairman, received and reviewed documents from relevant MDAs, conducted 35 interview sessions, interrogated a total of 91 persons, requested and received a total of 21 memoranda.

It also received submissions from professional associations, groups and individuals, and  visited the site of the collapsed building, as well as the home of the late CEO of Fourscore Heights Limited, Femi Osibona, where it retrieved some documents which he said helped the tribunal in gaining further insights into the  processes that led to the construction and eventual collapse of the structure.

The chairman lamented that incessant cases of collapsed buildings are as a result of  collapsed values, morals and ethics.

“We cannot sow the wind and not expect to reap the whirlwind. Therefore, ethics and due diligence need to be restored.

He said the report, if implemented, would help the government to bring a lasting solution to the incidence of building collapse, not only in Lagos State, but nationally.