AN EVALUATION OF THE STRATEGIES AND PROBLEMS OF MANAGING PUBLIC RESIDENTIAL ESTATE IN NIGER STATE

AN EVALUATION OF THE STRATEGIES AND PROBLEMS OF MANAGING PUBLIC RESIDENTIAL ESTATE IN NIGER STATE

(A CASE STUDY OF ZUMA HOUSING ESTATE SULEJA)

ABSTRACT

This project work focuses on the evaluation of the strategies and problems of managing public residential estate in Niger state with Zuma Housing Estate as a case study. The objective of the study is to evaluate the strategies adopted in the management of public residential estate and the problems militating against its proper management. Relevant literatures were also reviewed to aid the study ranging from the concept of management to its functions. The researcher adopts the use of questionnaires and field survey in gathering relevant data required for the study. Data were also analyzed in tables using percentages. The findings of this project work revealed that, the profound and exacerbating managerial challenges in the estate is not just insufficient fund and changes of management but that of bureaucracy and  to top it all, policy and governmental changes as the major challenges that enfeeble the management of public Housing Estate. The strengthening of managerial capacity, provision of adequate fund to carryout regular maintenance without delay and redressing of political practices that undermine efficient management will go a long way in proffering solution to the above identified challenges.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0       INTRODUCTION

1.1       BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Public estate management is emerging as a managerial science today (Kyle and Baird, 1995). It transcends beyond the role of rent collector (Li, 1997). Managing a residential property involves establishing goals, objectives and policies and implementation of strategies to achieve those goals and objectives.

Singh (1994, 1996) posited that residential property management is an activity that seeks to control interests in property owner and particular purpose for which the property is held. Wong (1999) considers residential property management as the work carried out to manage and maintain the development including its facilities at the level that will retain or enhance the value of the residential property, create a safe, functional and conducive living environment for occupants, keep or restore every facility in efficient working order and in good state of repair, and project a good appearance or image for the development. Ismail (1996) regards residential property management responsibility as including all the necessary making to ensure the economic and physical vitality of residential property assets.

The management of public estate assets particularly poses unique form of problems ranging from over inflation of invoices, corruption, nepotism, and awarding of contract works to contractors not knowledgeable about the jobs to be carried out. This array of issues and others, calls for monetization policy of the Federal Government, where all government properties are transferred to the private entities few years ago.

Many public estate developments and their post-construction management are undertaken with the intent of accomplishing immediate social, economic, financial and aesthetic benefits or returns, but they are executed with minimal concern for sustaining these benefits thereafter (Ihuah and Fortune, 2013; Ihuah and Eaton, 2013). The sustainability of public estate projects after completion is a concern that should not be overlooked in the built environment since housing estates provide shelter to human beings. It is also one amongst the four basic human needs that harmonize the other basic needs through the opportunity of providing comfort, security and safety to people.

The public housing estates prominence is sustained with appropriate post-construction management and other beneficial sustainability issues are tackled with respect to the built environment, economic growth and enhanced development in a country (Ihuah and Eaton, 2013). Therefore, the imperative to ensure that public estates returns are continually accomplished and enjoyed by all stakeholders should be the objective for any development organisation to achieve.

The challenges be devilling management of public estates vary with different context and analytical perceptions. The problems of chronic financial crisis, poor maintenance, lack of manpower and strained relationship between public estates residents and the management has been mentioned by (Davidson 1999) as recurring themes of public estate management issues, while Okpala (1977), identified bureaucracy corruption.

This implies that, there is need to look at the management of existing Public Housing Estates in order to restore them back to habitable condition through regular management and maintenance so that the intensity building management becomes higher with its age especially in the face of climatic change and its negative and adverse effects on the building itself, the facilities and the physical environment for sustainable development.

This project work therefore, examines the management of public estate in Niger State with a particular interest in Zuma Housing Estate Suleja with a view to identify the challenges confronting the effective management practice suitable for the Estate and other public Estate in Nigeria.

Public estate management is also the management of government property, equipment, tooling and physical capital assets that are acquired and used to build, repair and maintain the public estate. Property management involves the processes, systems and manpower required to manage the life cycle of all public residential property as defined above including acquisition, control, accountability, responsibility, maintenance, utilization and disposition (Njoku, 2006).

According to Ebie (2012), duties involved in public property management generally will include a minimum of these basic primary tasks

1. The full and proper screening or testing of an tenants/applicant’s credit, criminal history, rental history and ability to pay.
2. Lease contracting or accepting rent using legal documents approved for the area in which the property is located.
3. Mitigation and remediation regarding any maintenance issues, generally within a budget, with prior or conveyed consent via a Limited Power of Attorney legally agreed to by the property owner.

There are many facets to this public property (estate) management, including managing the accounts and finances of the real estate/residential properties, and participating in or initiating litigation with tenants, contractors and insurance agencies. Litigation is at times considered a separate function, set aside for trained attorneys. Although a person will be responsible for this in his/her job description, there may be an attorney working under a property manager. Special attention is given to landlord/tenant law and most commonly evictions, non-payment, harassment, reduction of pre-arranged services, and public nuisance are legal subjects that gain the most amount of attention from residential property managers.

1.2       STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM

According to Bello (2008), residential property is more than a mere shelter; it includes all facilities within and around it, embracing a bundle of services which entails both product and process. Management of public estate embraces in all ramifications the maintenance and development process, be it economic, social, physical). In fact, management of these properties has been subject of focus by researcher in recent times based on the cumbersome nature of the process. The problem of poor management of public estate is a global phenomenon and the severity of the problem differs from one nation to another and ranges from lacks adequate funding since it is tagged a government property, lack of routine inspection and unskilled management staff due to instability in management from the Government, changes in government, delay in carrying out maintenance work on the estate due to bureaucracy corruption and questionable character of staffs, Strained relationship between public estates residents and the management. e.t.c. However, the researcher seeks to evaluate the management of public estate in Niger state.

1.3       AIM AND OBJECTIVES

1.3.1    Aim

The aim of the study is to evaluate the management of public estate in Niger State with Zuma Housing Estate Suleja as the case study.

 1.3.2    Objectives

To achieve the above aim the following objectives will be pursued;

1. To examine the problems of public estate management in Niger state.
2. To analyze the prospects of residential properties management in Niger state.
3. To examine the challenges confronting the effective management of public estate.
4. To identify and examine the strategies adopted in the management of public estate.

1.4       RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following questions are very pertinent to the achievement of the objectives of  this study.

1. What are the strategies adopted by the Authority concerned for the management of the public estate in the past?
2. How effective are these strategies?
3. What has been the level of maintenance in the Estate?
4. What are the problems of public estate management in Niger state?

1.5       SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study addresses evaluate the management of public estate and it is restricted to Zuma housing estate in Suleja. This is because the general management is done by the government’s agents. The project work evaluates the management of public estate in Niger State.

1.6       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESEARCH

Public Estate requires maintenance in order to enhance their values and life span. After the development of public estate, the problem of management set in with few years of completion, other problems began if adequate and appropriate strategies are not employed.

This research will enlightens both government and the general public on the need to engage the services of professionals (Estate Surveyors and Valuers) in the management of public estate, so that the aim of developing such Estate will not be defeated.

The outcome of this study will educate the general public on the problems and prospects of managing residential properties in Nigeria emphasizing on its proper management and some other management challenges which will form a guide for estate managers in decision making.

This research will also serve as a resource base to other scholars and researchers interested in carrying out further research in this field subsequently, if applied will go to an extent to provide new explanation to the topic.

1.7       DEFINITION OF TERMS

MANAGEMENT: Allison (1967) defined management as the selection of goals and the planning, procurement, organization and control of the resources for their achievement.

MAINTENANCE: Lawal M. (2010) defined maintenance as the whole range of operation necessary to preserve a building with its finishes and fittings so that it continues to provide the same facilities and services which it did at its initial stage of development.

HOUSING: Housing extends beyond the concept of shelter. In the word of Abraham (1980) in his book “Housing in the Modern Market” it is not only shelter but part of the fabric of the neighborhoods life and the whole social milieu. It touches on many facts of industrialization, economic activities and development.

PUBLIC ESTATE: Are land and building owned and directly managed by public authorities and those rights of control which public authorities exercise over the estate of the private owners.

ESTATE: Udechukwu (2006) defined estate as “A legal entity denoting the character and quality of right that an individual or individuals possessed on a property.

HOUSING ESTATE: In the word of Essien G.A (2012) in his Lecture Note “An Approach to Property Development II (Vol. 3)”. “Is an area of land on which many houses are built either by private enterprise or by a public authority”.

DEVELOPMENT: Is the process of generating latent values in land or creating benefits there from by incurring on it costs in the form of labour, capital or management skill (Umeh, 1983).

PUBLIC DEVELOPER: Nathaniel (1979) cited that public developer deal directly  with government involvement in the provision of housing, public properties (Estate) are therefore owned, controlled and managed by Federal, State, Local Government and other public bodies which are set up and functioned under state and their aims is usually based on political, social and economic ground.

OBSOLESCENCE: Obsolescence is refers to as the wear and tear of the fabric of a building. It is a loss in the usefulness of a building and is a deficiency in design layout and equipment (Lawal M. 2010).

SLUM: Adetoro S.A and Mbazor D.N (2007) defined it as “An area of advanced blight condition usually requiring cleaning or re-building as the most effective corrective action. It can also be said to be a poor dirty crowded area in an urban area.

BLIGHT: Babatunde J. (1996) described blight as “Premature obsolescence and physical deterioration or other factors that has become undesirable for or impossible for normal development. Blight ranged from simple to complex.

1.7       STUDY AREA

Suleja is a city in Niger State of Nigeria it was established in the early 19th country by Mohammed Makau, the last Hausa Emir of Zaria and his followers who were fleeing the Fulani Jihadists engage in the conquest of the northern Nigeria Zaria or Zauzau, was one of the Hausa city/state of Northern Nigeria which were being conquered by the Fulani Jihadists under their charismatic leader Usman Bin Fodio.

LOCATION

Apart from it closeness to the Nigerian Federal Capital, it is also recognize as a centre of excellence for the traditional west African pottery namely the work famous Ladi Kwali pottery centre, established by Muheal Cartew in 1950. The leading exponent of this school of pottery was Dr. Ladikwali, who received world wide acclaim fro her work the original of which are display worldwide.

The name wooded savanna area of about 1,150 square miles (2980 square km) originally included form small koro chiefdoms that paid tribute to the house kingdom of Zazzau after warriors of the Fulani Jihadists (holy war) captured Zaira (Zazzaus capital, 137 miles [220km] north-northeast) about 1804, Mohammed Makau, Sarkin (“king of’) zazzau, led many of the Hausa nobility to the koro town of zuba (6 miles (10km) south). Abuja (Jatau), his brother and successor as Sarkin Zazzau, founded Abuja town in 1828, began construction of its wall a year after and proclaimed himself the first Emir of Abuja.

 POPULATION

Suleja is a city in Niger state of Nigeria, with the 2006 census, the local government area has a population of 216,578 dust north of Abuja is capital of Suleja Emirates. It is sometimes confuse with the nearly city of Abuja, due to its proximity and the fact that it was originally, called Abuja before the Nigeria government adopted the name from then his Royal Highness Suleiman Barau for it new Federal Capital 1976.

 INFRASTRUCTURAL BASE

Infrastructures are crucial to success on any locality infrastructural development/provision is an impetus to read estate development Nubi (2001). It is the necessary engine needed fro the effective operation of an area.

In Suleja, infrastructure includes, transportation infrastructure like roads, Trunk A, B and C road, communication infrastructure, like telephone mast, etc electricity, water supply, savage, schools, hospitals, financial institution e.t.c.

ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES

Discovery of agent sculptures of are NOK culture, both at Suleja town in the Makobolo river bed, have helped prove the influence of NOK on the Yoruba art of Ife. Today Suleja is well known as an export of Gbari pottery, cotton weaving, with local grown indigo and mart making are traditional activities but farming remain the chief occupation. Local reduces primarily in agricultural products in addition to pottery, a government secondary school and hospital are located in the town. The Dorben Polytechnic has a compus in Suleja.