NUJ seek FG, Private Sector Intervention on Affordable Housing for Journalist

Folalumi Alaran

The Nigerian Union of Journalist (NUJ) has called on the federal government and relevant stakeholders to assist them in providing affordable housing to journalists in Nigeria.

Chairman of NUJ Correspondents’ Chapel, FCT Council, Mr Jide Oyekunle made the call on Thursday during a one-day Conference titled ” Housing For All : The Role Of Cooperative Societies and Financial Institutions “.

He said the encumbrancing and rigorous conditions attached to the social housing loans was making it difficult for Journalist to own a house in the Federal Capital Territory, urging professionals in the real estate and mortgage sectors to brainstorm in finding lasting solutions to the challenges in the housing industry in Nigeria.
He said, ” We are using this occasion to call on the Nigerian government to come up with a special program of action exclusive for journalists that will lessen the stringent conditions associated with accessing loans to enable them build houses of their own.

” In principle, the mortgage loan is easy to obtain and repayment is flexible but in practice the reverse is the case considering the prevailing economic reality in the country.

Chairman of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), Abuja Chapter, Mr Adebanjo Adeleke urged his counterparts to have discussions and come up with a long-term solution to the housing crisis in Nigeria.