Group Seeks Rent Control, Affordable Housing In Anambra

A civil society organisation, Leadership Orientation and Basic Rights Advocacy Centre (LOBRAC), has called for the provision of affordable social housing and legislation on rent control in Anambra.

LOBRAC’s Executive Director, Mr Stanley Okafor, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka.

Okafor said the rising cost of accommodation, particularly within the Awka Capital Territory, required urgent measures to check it.

He said that LOBRAC was ready to partner with the State Government to address the high cost of housing and improve residents’ access to affordable accommodation.

According to him, the organisation will also collaborate with the state legislature to develop a rent control and regulation bill for consideration and passage.

“In an effort to pursue this matter, we wrote a letter to Gov. Chukwuma Soludo, highlighting the difficulties faced by residents in securing affordable accommodation.

“The governor responded promptly to the letter, and we appreciate him for that. We also commend his consistent disposition towards supporting the downtrodden.

“We recently visited the Commissioner for Housing, Mr Henry Arinze, to discuss the urgent need to control and regulate rents as well as curb the activities of unlicensed housing agents.

“However, that meeting did not yield the desired result, but we will continue to advocate policies that will improve the welfare and living conditions of residents,” he said.

Okafor said the group would continue to support the government’s developmental efforts, while advocating policies that promote the welfare of residents.

An investigation carried out by NAN revealed that rents had gone up astronomically in Isu-Aniocha, Okpuno, Mgbakwu and other suburbs of Awka.

A one-room self-contained apartment, which previously went for about N150,000, has doubled to N300,000, while a two-bedroom flat went up from N400,000 to between N600,000 and N800,000.

Also, rent for a three-bedroom apartment has jumped from N500,000 to between N1 million and N1.5 million.

In highbrow areas, such as Ngozika, Udoka, Amawbia, and Agu-Awka, a two-bedroom apartment now attracts about N1.2 million, up from N800,000, while three-bedroom apartments go for N1.5 million and above, as against the previous N1 million and N1.2 million.

(NAN)