Preserving Historical buildings for Posterity, By Zaid O Olanrewaju
NEWS DIGEST – It is a common knowledge that there is an outright disrespect of historical structures in Nigeria. It is saddening to see government allocation of patches and the building of houses on the Kano city wall.
The Kano city wall was once a 12 mile long, 40 feet wide and 50 feet high monument that has been abused by past governments in the state. In comparison, this wall ranks on the same level as the wall of Jerusalem.
Likewise, in Ogun State the current administration has been the most destructive on record in terms of community desecration and destruction in the guise of constructing modern edifices. Abeokuta, Ijebu Ode, Ijebu Igbo and Ota have all fell to this elimination of physical records. The Brazilian quarters and old Ikoyi have not been exempted from unregulated demolition in Lagos state.
There is a lack of attention paid to the old structures while we concentrate on new innovations. There is a widely popular misconception that it is better to destroy the time-tested old architectural pieces for new buildings that could not even last. Principal actors involved in this act do not have a clear understanding, hence the rush to destroy the dilapidated old structure and replace them with new erections. There are lot of places we can build new structures after conducting environmental impact assessment studies.
There are many reasons we should preserve our cultural heritage including the historical links to the past. We should stop erasing physical links to the past in a bid to establish recent concrete. There should be a proper assessment of buildings of historical importance before any demolition. What message do we intend to communicate to coming generations as history? These structures are a reminder of our past culture and relationships. They usher the security of permanent residence and heritage on the timeline of inhabited space.
We should also consider city culture, economy and identity. Every major city is known for a heritage structure. London, Paris, New York are tourist destinations because of their iconic structures. The Big Ben, Eiffel Tower and statue of liberty are brand images of these cities. Likewise, the old departmental stores and government buildings in Ibadan, Kaduna and Enugu could be regarded as monuments because of their historical antecedents.
Heritage Boost to property. Most old buildings were designed by masters and were once art marvels. They were built with rare quality materials. Some old buildings have better values than recent buildings. When you destroy old property, you can hardly quantify the value of what is destroyed.
Jobs creation from preservation. Restoring old structures is green while providing jobs for artists and workmen thus enabling skills transfer to the younger generation. Many building and construction skills have faded away due to the lack of use. Preservation is environmentally friendly and it’s the peak of recycling. It eliminates construction wastages and reduces energy for creating additional new material
Neuroscience has proved the aesthetic value of architectural beauty to the brain. New business thrives better in old buildings. Old buildings styles attract people by giving community pride. We can only regret the destruction because once its destroyed the local identity is lost and it can never be restored
As practised worldwide the uses of old buildings and structures include halls, offices, library, museum, government offices, banks, events centres, religious centres etc. Each local government and higher education institutions should identify historical buildings within their locality. The departments of history, archaeology, architecture, geography and other related fields stand to benefit from this because it provides an avenue for more academic research. Students should be introduced to practical realities of society rather than moulding armchair scholars. While the local government can gain existing structures at a minimal fee for developmental purposes.
Traditional rulers, community leaders and the youths should rise up as custodians of our heritage. The labour of our heroes past shall never be in vain. There is a need to document, create awareness and volunteer for the support of these historical pieces.
In the UK for instance, heritage buildings directly contributed £11.9 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the UK economy. This is equivalent to 2% of national GVA. Presently about 278,000 people are involved in the heritage industry. Domestic and international visitors to these structures contribute £16.4 billion to the economy yearly. The repair and maintenance of historical buildings generated £9.6 billion in the construction sector. 138,000 businesses representing 5% of all employment in the UK are housed within iconic structures. They provide the perfect premises for the growing creative industries as they offer flexible and distinctive workspaces. Creative and cultural industries are 29% more likely to be found in a listed building. Volunteering at heritage organisations represents 6% of all voluntary work in England. It’s essential for the day-to-day running of those organisations and is estimated to be worth £520m nationally.
A financial comparison will reveal the numerous potential benefits from the heritage sector via direct and indirect sources to Nigeria. Together, government and citizen will create original plans that embrace our past to connect with future in line with practice in conscious nations around the world. I hope this write up will give decision makers the impetus to think twice before destroying our heritages for new urban concrete.
Zaid O Olanrewaju
Banstead Village
Surrey, United Kingdom
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