The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Tuesday, announced the immediate suspension of General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, Mr. Gbolahan Oki.

Oki, an architect, whhas suspended from work indefinitely.

His suspension is coming against the background of controversy surrounding the construction approval for the collapsed 21-storey building on Gerald Road in Ikoyi.

In the wake of the collapse, Oki disclosed that the owner of the collapsed 21-storey building, under construction in Ikoyi, was given approval to construct only 15 floors.

His claim was, however, punctured by Lagos Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, when he paid an on-the-spot assessment visit to the site on Tuesday morning.

Reacting to the report, Hamzat stressed that the affected building was given an approval for 21 floors and not the 15-storey narrative being dangled in the media.

“It is not true. This collapsed building was approved for 21, not 15 floors. And the approval was signed three years ago.

“The only problem here is defect construction. As I said, it is still under investigation,” he said.

An hour after Hamzat addressed the controversy surrounding the Ikoyi collapsed structure, Oki’s suspension from work was effected and announced in the media.

In the statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, the governor directed that, as a first step, the LASBCA boss be suspended from work immediately.

This is just as Sanwo Olu announced that it has set up an independent panel to probe the collapse of the 21-storey building on Gerrard Road, Ikoyi.

“Members of the panel will be drawn from the Nigeria Institute of Architects, Nigerian Institute of Town Planners, Nigeria Society of Engineers and other professional bodies.

“It will independently investigate the remote and immediate causes of the incident and make recommendations on how to prevent future occurrence. The investigation is not part of the internal probe already being conducted by the government.

“More equipment and personnel have been deployed in the site to save more lives,” the statement partly read.