Developer Urges Govt To Partner Private Sector On Mass Housing

AWKA

The managing director of Daniel Bob Group Limited, an estate development company has advised the Anambra State Government to address the housing challenges in the state, especially the capital city, Awka, by collaborating with the private sector providers. 

Daniel Orji, said the increasing housing shortage in Awka was due to the failure of previous administrations to invest in the sector. 

Orji stated this on Saturday while lamenting that there was no active or functional government-owned estate project in Awka in spite of the good number of large expanses of land inaugurated for the purpose. 

He, therefore called on the governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, to audit land allocation in the capital territory and set a deadline within which the owners must develop dormant ones.

Orji called on the governor, to as a matter of policy, set up a specialised bank for mortgage financing to create low-interest loans for developers in the state. 

“I want to call on the governor to audit land allocation in Awka, so many lands were taken from the communities by the government and sold to officials without developing them. 

“Go round Awka, there is no active government estate, where you see work going on are the ones private developers like Daniel Bob are handling, we have the capacity to work with the Anambra State government to provide mass and affordable housing in Awka. 

“We are ready to partner with the government to solve the housing problem, let me also use this opportunity to call on Governor Soludo to set up a special bank, like AnambraMortgage Bank for civil servants to enable access to cheap finance through developers,” he said.

Orji urged Soludo to revisit the 3-Arms Zone project at Isiaguin the Awka South Local Government Area which had been abandoned at various stages of execution. 

He said Isiagu represents the New Awka but has not been able to take off because of the absence of government presence, critical infrastructure and social amenities. 

According to him, some projects in Isiagu like the state headquarters of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps have been completed, adding that if the governor should encourage them to move in with owners of other completed projects, they will encourage others to move in.