Chairman of Emmalix Trade and Investment Limited
[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s Nigeria’s real estate sector continues to evolve, several challenges facing the sector have also hampered it from realising its true potential and the market is an all-comer market. Subscribers to home ownership plans in the country have said the failure of the government to regulate the sector has put people seeking to own homes at the mercy of unscrupulous estate developers. But the developers have also noted challenges in the capital intensive sector. In this interview, Engr. Emmanuel Oshia, the Chairman of Emmalix Trade and Investment Limited, speaks with Grassroots Publishers online team on the impediments in real estate development while recommending possible solutions. He also speaks on the company’s successes with its estates in Delta as well as its challenges.
Hear him:
Take a look back in the then days when real estate business appears unknown. Why has it become something of importance in the present time?
During those days if you say Real Estate business is unknown, it not unknown with our fore fathers because they engage in trade by barter and the value in terms of monetary value was low. That is why you hear them saying this family own this land, the other family owns that land. Some probably give you a goat and take a land. Land has been in that system that time and its valuable within their ambits but in the present time we gave it a more advanced face lift.
Your company Emmalix Trade and Investment Limited has been around for a long time, tell us how it came into being?
I was in Lagos back in the days and was into freight Forwarding (Clearing Agency). There was this Affiliate school that came from Ghana to Lagos State University (LASU) and we were interested. In the school I saw various Courses in Transport and other disciplines. So, I chose Real Estate and studied for three (3) years before the whole thing stopped and the school was di-affiliated from LASU and they left Nigeria. But within that three years I was able to acquire little knowledge on Real Estate. When Clearing became unprofitable to me I said let me change job environment. And if I want to go into Real Estate, I can as well do it in Lagos but I said let me go to Delta State which was a new area as at that time. Let me start from my place and expand to other areas. At some point I thought of going to Osogbo in Osun State but communication in their local language would pose a challenge to me. So, I decided to go back to my place. When I came back I joined some few guys around then in Asaba and observed and studied the level they were operating. The essence of joining them was to understudy what was practically obtainable in the real Estate business. I got their ideas added to the one I studied in Lagos. That’s how I came up with something like this.
In Asaba, Real Estate Developers appears to be the in thing now where people have confidence. What is the relationship between the Real Estate Practitioners and the indigenes who own these lands? What are the challenges you people pass through in securing the land?
Because I am an indigene that’s where I prefer to run my business. Probably buying from communities. I have to look into the family, the rangers and the committees handling the land. What area the committee says you should work on you go ahead. You also find out who is the Diokpa and thereafter bring your investors to come in. land is trouble in itself but when you handle it with sense, the problems become minor. And because we dig deep into the real ownership when such issues arise we see it as minor things we can handle on our own.
In this area you cannot find such issues except for some very minor things we handle outside the investors’ knowledge. We investigate deeply so that by tomorrow if you are bringing an investor we provide a very good enabling environment where he can do his business successfully. Not like in some areas where after building, the next day you see your fence demolished. That’s why we check very well before we go in.
How does Estate Developers solve the problems of multiple selling of lands?
We don’t engage in that at all. Doing that automatically makes you a fraudster. It is a fraudulent act. But when it involves maybe two individuals and issues of such arise, that can be resolved. But selling one plot of land to so many persons is a fraudulent practice and we don’t do that in our organization. It is one of the things I preach against when we go for Developers meetings, don’t sell and re-sell. It’s not good for the business and not good for you as a person for the sake of integrity.
You have established an integrity within the Real Estate Developers forum, looking at it at the present time, how do you see that sector contributing to the growth of the economy of the country in 10years time?
Like me, I pay my tax and if others do same there would be increase in revenue accruing to the government. On the area of empowerment, my organization has close to 40 youths working here, if Estate Developers engages 40 each, the rate of crime and other vices would reduce and the youth would be able to sort one or two things around him at home thereby staying away from crime and contributing positively to the growth of the economy.
Do you protect your clients when they buy land from you in time of developing the land and the rest?
That’s what we do and that’s the reason why we have to go deep to know the families that own the land. And when one or two persons come up you would be able to say ‘I don’t know you, I know this one. These are the people that signed for me. Where are you coming from? Depending on the angle the person is coming from, then, we would know how to handle his matter. For example, when I bought some lands around Admiralty University and the government encroached into my land, I had to go back to the family I bought the land from and asked if they have alternative place to give to my clients who also bought from me? And they said yes. Which they gave us. These are some of the ways you protect your clients from loss because they are my clients. If you don’t protect them who else will protect them?
Real Estate is a very vast sector. What are the real challenges you have faced all these years you ventured into Real Estate business?
The business is capital intensive because you don’t just go into a family and tell them I want to have this land. You start up with something. Secondly, you can also see one or two persons coming up to say the land belongs to them after due consultations have been concluded and all that. We’re not new again in it and it does not give us panic anymore because it’s land affair. What we do is to know the angle the person is coming from. Is he a member of the family or trying to claim what he’s not? These are the challenges so far I’ve experienced.
How do you handle a situation where land has been given to you by the family and government comes and overrun it?
Like the one we have now, I’ve approached the Commissioner for Lands and she told me, “This one they have acquired and gave to them”. But as we speak their tenure in office is up and I don’t know who comes after her as Commissioner but I’ll get it back.
Some clients are scared of the Community youths and various land task force,As a Real Estate Manager, how do you convince your client that he/she can still buy land and nobody harasses you?
When we started, I was giving out to companies. I brought PWAN into Ibusa and many others. During that time, we have the Local Government and the Community Youths and Surveillance Youths in general. What I did was to go to the Local Government chairman and told him that these people are investors. If somebody comes in and you charge him exorbitantly for a plot, how much is he investing on the land? Let’s do it with understanding and have a standard. I discussed with the Local government and they agreed at certain amount per plot because they’re investors and buying higher number of plots. I also went to the youths and their president and we agreed on a standard. That agreed standard is what we’re operating on anywhere I have lands. My clients are also protected in that area.
What would be your advice to anybody who wants to buy genuine land and develop?
Like I said earlier, we operate genuinely and think of tomorrow. I will not remain here forever, somebody will take over after. It’s ideal to put a legacy that somebody would inherit. Land business is a good thing and I advise people to invest their money in land; invest in a genuine company like ours – Emmalix Trade and Investment Limited. This is called Land banking. You can invest there. I started with only N1,500,000; bought and sold and re-invested the money back into land. That’s where we are today and I thank God for today. In every business there are ups and down. We’re proud of Emmalix and we’re proud of ourselves.
You have touched lives as seen from the people that work with you. What’s the magic especially with those that have lost hope before now?
There is no magic there, it’s God. In Real Estate you don’t know who is going to bring President Tinubu to your table. When they come I would say follow these people to the bush and know what they’re doing. You don’t send people away. When they come you accommodate them. Some of them have lost hope like you said but when they come in we accommodate them and give them hope. Remember when I left Lagos, I didn’t come with anything. Ikwele of Ibusa can testify to that because he left before us. People said so many negative things but I came back with something. Probably they were expecting I should come back with a car, that’s a material thing. I came back with wisdom and knowledge that I planted which is manifesting now. So, if they come you welcome them. It’s not like we have it too much but since we have the one you can take we will not stop assisting them.
What is the future of real estate in Nigeria?
The future is real estate, certainly. Just like the government is picking interest in agriculture, they should also pick specific and special interest in real estate because that is where the future is.
Even the most developed countries in the world are into housing so why not Nigeria. Real estate should be part of our development plan and aspiration.
How would you describe the regulation of real estate in Nigeria?
Well. Real estate business is not regulated in Nigeria. There’s no established rules for players in the market. That’s why I said it’s an all comer market. Everybody can establish himself and get into the market. But the coming of the Real Estate Developers Association has helped to register competent developers especially here in Asaba and its environs. But there are still a lot of quacks in the market. And with quackery, you know what you get in terms of quality and in terms of delivery. Also in terms of genuineness, business and intention.
Like I said, if there are basic regulations there, the mortgage industry will be very sound. Apart from the mortgage, there will be some specific government intention to deliver quality houses by providing some level of financing for real estate developers. Like you know, the economy of Nigeria isn’t stable and building materials are skyrocketing everyday and that makes construction expensive. And that’s why houses are expensive too.
In that case, you will have stock of houses with few buyers. The willing public are there but there is no financial backing. So in as much as the government is providing mortgages, the government should also provide the medium to regulate building materials.
Looking at you, you are a very hard working person when it comes to Real estate matters. How do you relax?
I put myself off from work Saturdays and Sundays. I don’t come to the office on Saturdays except it is very important. But most Saturdays Sundays I don’t go out, I operate from home. Most times I tell my workers to stay off sites and when any public holiday falls in we don’t work on such days as well. We observe public holidays.
What will you be remembered for?
Good name! If you meet anybody for something and they say go and meet him, he’ll give you that which you want, what else do I want? If the chiefs in Igbuzor can recognize me what else do I want? I cannot put hand in bad things because people recommend me to others. That good name is what I want to leave behind; it’s not money because money has its work to do which it will always do but that Good name will remain forever. Thank you.
