Senator Gbenga Ashafa: A Game Changer

Senator Gbenga Ashafa: A Game Changer

Two words to describe the work of Senator Gbenga Ashafa at the Federal Housing Authority: change and speed. In less than six months, Ashafa has managed to adjust to the sky-high expectations of his office, tune his staff to visions of practical and commendable housing projects, and effectively turn around the generally negative sentiment of Nigerians regarding FHA.

Under the management of Senator Gbenga Ashafa, the Federal Housing Authority is becoming one of the most active ministries on the block. For the first time in a long time, staff meetings are not an excuse for roundabout discussions, formulation of white-elephant, and patting of backs for project funds well nipped. Rather, accountability is the watchword, and the results of the efforts of Ashafa and his team speak for them.

The latest report from FHA revolves around the results of the meeting between its Managing Director and Chief Executive, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, and executives of the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC) on December 9, 2020. The meeting saw the review of past alliances and projects, and how best to accomplish the targets of FHA and SSASCGOC.

The meeting also demonstrated one of the selling points of the leadership style of Senator Ashafa: a willingness to collaborate with others. It is in this spirit that Ashafa has begun to reform the affairs of the FHA, starting with reorganising key offices and staff for maximum effect. Also noteworthy at the beginning of Ashafa’s tenure was the reconnaissance survey of all housing projects and construction sites still in progress within and around Abuja and the South-West.

In less than six months, Ashafa has arranged the involvement of several corporate bodies, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian Budget Office, the National Assembly, Federal Mortgage Bank, Family Homes Fund, and many others. The results of this are as startling as they are stellar: a project to make 300,000 affordable housing units all over Nigeria using indigenous labour; over 700 housing units to be completed before the end of 2020 in Lugbe, Abuja, and many other prominent Nigerian cities; and more and more.

To accomplish and devise so much in so little time, that is the hallmark of a game-changer. For FHA and Nigeria, it is Senator Gbenga Ashafa.

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