The President, Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors, Kene Nzekwe, has called on the government at all levels to engage the services of quantity surveyors in project procurement and execution in the country.
He stated this at a press conference in Ado-Ekiti during the BGM/Workshop Investiture and Inauguration of the 5th Senate with the theme “Sustainable Procurement Practices: Expanding the Frontiers of the QS Profession.”
He decried that quantity surveyors have been neglected by governments across all levels while urging the state government to engage their services aimed at ensuring that projects are duly executed and not abandoned.
He said, “We are very worried, particularly when the Nigerians who are in the government sector, who use public funds also at the subnational level. When they administer projects, they do not get quantity surveyors involved.
“It is only the quantity surveyor that can come up with a cost estimate that will ensure that the resources that are available can be utilised to the fullest of what they want and judiciously utilised so that the project objective that the client desires can be achieved within the provision of the budget.
“But once you eliminate the quantity surveyor, then what you will have is a catholic of abandoned projects because the one who would provide the cost advice, you did not get home involved, you did not seek his own opinion, you did not bring him on board, so that, at the onset of the project, he would provide the necessary cost advice.
“And our message today is to those who are in charge of Ekiti State as a government, that we, as quantity surveyors, are here willing to partner with them. We want to partner with them because we know that the funds are not available, but the ones that are available, we want them to be able to use them in such a way that at the end of it all, they will be able to achieve their project objectives.
“But once you did not get the quantity surveyors involved, there are tendencies that whatever you want to achieve for the people of Ekiti State may just be a mirage. And indeed, the quantity surveyor, by virtue of his training, is the only one who is trained to give proper advice in terms of procurement and if you do not procure well, that project is also bound to fail.”
On the incessant issue of building collapse in the country, he charged the relevant authorities to engage the professionals towards eliminating the menace of building collapse.
“We want to use this platform to reach out to those who are supposed to be the approving authorities to ensure that whatever they are going to approve, that the right professionals are involved, who are properly certified by their professional institute and regulatory body,” he said.
At the conference, Mrs Comfort Ade-Ojo emerged as the first female chairperson of NIQS, Ekiti State Chapter. She took over from QS Sunday Ariyo, who is the immediate past state chairman.
Other new executives include QS Ajayi Adeife Oluyemi, Deputy Chairman, QS Abe Adekunle A., General Secretary, QS Kolawole Sunday Benjamin, Assistant Secretary, Olanbiwonnu Olayide Joseph, Financial Secretary, QS Lydia Oni, Treasurer, QS Eze Emeka Oster, PRO, and QS Olufadeji Kikelomo, WAQSN Coordinator.
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