Hon. Porri raises alarm over high rent increase in Bayelsa State

By Ifeanyi Eduzor

The member representing  Ekeremor Constituency 1 in the Bayelsa  State House of Assembly Hon. (Bar.) Tare Porri has raised alarm over high rent increase in the state warning that urgent steps need to  be taken to curb it in order to prevent it from snowballing to societal crisis.

He stated this on the floor of the state’s House of Assembly while presenting a motion on the urgent need to regulate the excessive increase of house rent and agency fees in Yenegoa and other urban centres in the state.

According to him,  a modest one bedroom apartment which before  goes for between N 120,000 to N200,000 per annum in Yenagoa or it’s outskirts now goes for between N800,000- N1.5 million depending on the location and type of property making it difficult for an average family to afford a decent accommodation.

He noted that a civil servant in the state earns about N118,000 and with the rate landlords are increasing their rent, it will be difficult for a civil servant, low income earners and young couples to have a decent home, lamenting that many of them are now facing threat of eviction from their apartments.

“It’s quite unfortunate with the way rent is being increased in Bayelsa State and this is placing a very big burden on the citizens whose salaries and income cannot afford the astronomical increase.

“Even the agency and legal fees which are supposed to be borne by landlords in a fair business practices are now being transferred to tenants which is unfair.

“Right now, many tenants  are facing eviction threat from their landlords and we as representatives of the people must act quickly to put a check to this because failure to do so might lead to crime, break down of law and order and other social vices,”he warned.

In his motion, Hon. Barrister Porri, wants the House of Assembly to establish a rent control and House regulation committee to ensure compliance and mediate disputes between landlords and tenants, mandate the Committee on Lands, Housing and Urban Development to immediately investigate causes of the recent rent hike across the state and recommend actionable measures to control it and also mandate the State’s Ministry of Information to embark on public enlightenment to educate landlords, agents and tenants on fair and lawful housing rent practices in the state.

The Honourable member while thanking the Speaker of the House and other Honourable members for the interest shown in the motion explained that he presented it being  conscious of the cries of the communities they represent, civil servants, artisans, traders and young couples who can no longer bear the weight of the increase.