An Assessment of Stakeholders' Unethical Practices in Building Construction Projects

Abstract

Despite the existence of national building codes and regulatory bodies, unethical practices remain a national problem that has led to a surge in the number of building collapses, resulting in the loss of lives, and properties, and health and safety catastrophes that cause damage to the environment. The study assessed professionals' perceptions of stakeholders' unethical practices in building construction projects to mitigate the severity of the misconduct. The study is aimed at identifying the most common forms of unethical practices at the pre-construction and construction stages of building construction projects. The study used survey methods through a structured questionnaire. Purposive sampling technique was used and the sample size was 77 for the survey. The major findings at the pre-construction and construction stages are collusive tendering (bid rigging) at 4.70 (75.36%); bribery and cash inducement at 4.55 (68.12%); and illegal award of tender at 4.54 (65.22%). At the construction stage, report falsification at 4.51 (57.97%); non-adherence to welfare, health, and safety at 4.48 (56.07%); and overlapping and ghosting at 4.45 (56.07%). The study concluded that stakeholders should stand for their integrity due to the significance of the major findings recorded at the pre-construction and construction stages of building projects. The study recommended that stakeholders should exhibit the hallmark of professional excellence by adhering to professional values to mitigate the severity of the misconduct.