Kwara State Geographic information Services, KWGIS, has stopped some ongoing projects in the state for not securing requisite approval from the agency.

The projects include a pavilion, an urban development project by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Peace Pharmaceutical, along Asa Dam bypass and HRA along Lubcon road, all in Ilorin where large scale construction activities were ongoing without requisite approval by the agency.

Chairman of the agency, Abdulkareem Babatunde Sulyman, in a statement in Ilorin on Saturday, disclosed that two of the projects, Peace Pharmaceutical and HRA Lubcon have been sealed up and proponents directed to carry out the requirements of the law before commencement of further works at their sites.

He said anyone developing a project in the state ought to seek and secure appropriate land use approvals as stipulated under the law.

According to him “KWGIS has been running different enlightenment campaigns on the radio in this regard.

“This is a basic thing. Where people or agency of government overlook or neglect such basic requirements of physical development law, we have a duty to not just stop them but to also impose appropriate fines.

“The Pavilion is an urban development project under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. It is a new construction. As such, appropriate approvals ought to be sought and secured before anything is done.

“All government projects, local, state, and federal, get such approvals. This has not been done for the project. We have accordingly directed workers on site to do the appropriate thing before they resume work.”

“This is a standard urban development protocol. Development Control activities are carried out as spelt out in the law. It’s a tool for regulating developments and ensuring safety.

“The agency has a duty to maintain standards because the buck stops on its table if such a project collapses in the future,” the statement added.

Kwara agency clamps down on unapproved construction projects