The Construction and Civil Engineering Senior Staff Association (CCESSA) has called on the National Assembly (NASS) to take all necessary steps to fast tract the deliberations on the Local Content bill to ensure that the policy is established as a Local Content Act in the construction industry.
The Construction workers association also called on the Federal Government to urgently intervene in the influx of expatriate into the Construction Industry, stressing that the Industry cannot move forward without Government intervention on the high rate of expatriate quota in the industry.
CCESSA’s National President, Comrade (Dr.) Augustine Etafo made the declarations in Lagos while interacting with news men on the dangers of Government failure to intervene in the challenges facing the construction workers in the country.
He said: “We call on the NASS to take all the necessary steps to fast tract the deliberations on the Local Content bill to ensure that the policy is established as a Local Content Act in the construction industry to save the industry from collapse”.
“We also call on the Federal, State and Local Government to as a matter of urgency, address the unemployment needs of the youths,” he added.
According to Etafo, the influx of expatriate into the Construction Industry is still a common occurrence and has not abated and therefore advised the National Assembly (NASS) to take all necessary steps to fast tract the deliberations on the Local Content bill to ensure that the policy is established as a Local Content Act in the Construction Industry.
“Our Association has specifically looked at youth’s unemployment, high level of corruption that creates a wide gap between the rich and the poor, the poor infrastructural facilities are some of the key challenges which the government must pay attention to for us to address these security challenges in the country,” he said.
While identifying policies that would help to boost the level of economic activities in the construction sector as well as necessary changes to be effected to ensure job creation and minimise brain drain in the Industry, the group called on the three tiers of government to intensity effort in the creation of job for our teaming youth population who are graduating from our higher institutions on yearly basis.
On security challenges the NEC-in-Session noted with dismay and condemns unequivocally the security challenges in various parts of the country and its implications in the Construction Industry.
Source : Independent