REPORTER: UCHE NDEKE
The Anambra State Government has restated its commitment to strict enforcement of physical planning laws to promote orderly development and protect the environment.
The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development Mr Chijioke Ojukwu told journalists in Awka that the ministry is alarmed that, since his assumption of office and the establishment of the Legal Review Department, no building plan submitted to the Ministry has complied with the Physical Planning Regulations of Anambra State, 2015.
According to the Commissioner Mr over two hundred applications examined so far show widespread violations as the most common breaches involve non-compliance with setback and building coverage area rules as contained in Sections 10 and 11 of the Regulations.
Mr Ojukwu noted that most building plans exceed the permitted coverage of the land by up to ninety percent, resulting in the absence of parking spaces.
He said that in other cases, many plans lacked the required site allocation plans under Section 3 (1) of the Regulations.
Mr Ojukwu further stated that some site analysis plans are based on false statements and misrepresentation of facts intended to obtain permits that should not be granted.
The Commissioner expressed disappointment that Architects, whose professional duty is to plan, design and oversee the construction of buildings, are routinely submitting plans that subvert the Regulations and create disorderliness in the state.
He therefore stated that in view of the lack of compliance, the Ministry admonishes Architects to ensure strict adherence to the Anambra State Physical Planning Regulations 2015, particularly the setback and building coverage area rules.
Mr Ojukwu warned that any subsequent submission of a non-compliant building plan will attract sanctions, including a formal petition to the Disciplinary Committee of the professional body and the blacklisting of the Architect concerned.
