President of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, Ghana (IET Ghana), Wonder Davor, has urged Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to adequately equip their Housing and Works Departments to effectively supervise construction projects after building permits have been issued.
His call follows the collapse of a building housing worshippers near the Experimental D/A School in Accra Newtown on Sunday, March 29, an incident which left three people dead and 20 others injured.
Speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Monday, March 30, 2026, he said many assemblies fail to prioritise post-permit supervision due to inadequate logistics and technical resources for engineers on the field.
According to him, without the necessary tools and mobility, engineers are unable to properly inspect and enforce building standards after permits are issued.
He therefore called on MMDAs to invest in equipment and strengthen their works departments to ensure effective monitoring of ongoing construction projects.
“Let me say this to all assemblies. When you take money from a developer, please allow the engineers to supervise the project. Sometimes it will surprise you to know that you will go to the assembly and the vehicles that they will use to supervise these projects are not there. Even a switch hammer to test the strength of the concrete, they do not have.
“The equipment they are supposed to use to detect the size of the iron rod inside the building and their strength, they don’t have it. So when you take permit from the developer, you are supposed to resource the works department to do this. Most assemblies don’t pay much attention to post-permit supervision,” he said.
He also raised concerns about the structural integrity of the collapsed building, noting that the beams appeared significantly larger than the supporting columns. He further cited issues of concrete segregation, explaining that the separation of coarse and fine aggregates weakens the overall strength of the material.
“All these things are evidence that the construction itself was not properly done,” he said.
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