Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) have urged Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to create a valuation unit to handle all issues of valuation and compensation.
Board inducts 330 registered estate surveyors
Following several complaints from communities and project consultants on inadequate compensation for the execution of projects, members of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) have urged Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to create a valuation unit to handle all issues of valuation and compensation.
In their submission during a courtesy visit to the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Mr. Nsima Ekere, in Port Harcourt, they said a registered estate surveyor and valuer should head the unit.
The Chairman, NIESV Rivers State Branch, Mr. Elliot Orupabo, lamented that some members of the NIESV, decried the absence of a valuation unit to handle right-of-way acquisition and compensation matters, stating: “the absence of this unit is a major lacuna which the engineers in the project management Department has capitalized upon to vet and tamper with compensation valuation reports prepared by registered estate surveyors and valuers without recourse to the consultant.”
Orupabo highlighted the provisions of the Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Act Cap E13 LFN, that states: “Only a Registered Estate Surveyors and Valuer shall value and determine the value of property in Nigeria.”
Orupabo advised the Commission to always ensure the engagement and mobilization of estate valuers to site after clearance, noting that this had always been a problem to the consultant estate valuer, as the final value of compensation was often considered by the Commission as high, while the Community considered the values as inadequate.
According to him, estate valuers should be engaged early enough to go to site before the commencement of construction work. “This will enable the valuer capture all heads of chains accurately along the right of way.”
Ekere blamed the problem on inadequate provisions in contracts for the payment of compensation.He said: “The fund is always a bit low so that by the time a consultant finishes evaluation and brings a report, you find out that what is in the contract is not adequate to pay compensation”
He however, pledged to urgently address the issues of compensation for right of way for its development projects in the Niger Delta region.He stated that the Public Procurement Act made it very cumbersome for review of contract sums and “that is one of the problems we have had in payment of compensations and settling of fees to consultants.”
The NDDC boss assured that outstanding payments to estate surveyors and valuers would be addressed holistically through a joint committee of the NDDC and NIESV, to be headed by the Commission’s Executive Director Projects EDP.Meanwhile, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola has urged estate surveyors and Valuers to support government fight against corruption through accurate declaration of value of assets.
The Minister who stated this during the 40th Induction ceremony for 330 newly registered Estate Surveyors and Valuers in Abuja, said recent events in the sector has not been cheering and the current administration frowns at corruption.
While urging the inductees not to allow themselves to be caught in the anti-corruption web, Fashola however disclosed plans to partner with the body in the implementation of the International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS), which require that the net worth of public assets is captured and incorporated in the financial statements of public sector entities.
He said that this would facilitate full disclosure and entrance integrity and global competitiveness of the country financial records with a view of attracting investors.
The Chairman, Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria (ESVARBON) Olayinka Sonaike noted that although the key objective of the board was to increase the number of registered estate surveyors, which would not be compromise standard.He noted that the stamp and seal given to the inductees are the properties of the board and could be withdrawn if the rules of the board are violated.
