A landlord and his tenant in the Modugari area of Maiduguri in Borno State on Saturday had a verbal fallout over whose responsibility it is to reconstruct the parts of the apartment that were damaged by the recent flooding that ravaged the state capital and surroundings.
Chronicle NG reported that the recent flooding, which is currently receding, displaced millions of residents and destroyed houses and properties worth millions of Naira.
During the altercation, which led to verbal abuse, the landlord of the apartment, Moses Tegwolo, told reporters that the flood was a natural disaster while noting that tenants could not pin the damage on the landlord.
“I was affected by the flood; I am even yet to repair my side. Am I the cause of the damage? How will he be telling me that if he repairs it, he will remove the money when next he wants to pay rent?” the landlord said.
He continued, “If he can’t stay, he is free to leave. Besides, I told him, Let me bring a bricklayer; let them do the estimate. At most, we will just share the loss on a certain percentage. He is insisting.”
The tenant, Ahmed Isah, explained his side of the tale, saying that when he rented the flat, it was in poor condition and that he had spent a lot of money attempting to fix it up.
“When I came here a few months ago, I painted this room, fixed some broken parts on the floor, and even the window when it broke. Nothing was taken out of my rent, and now the flood has destroyed the cemented floor, walls, and house doors. I should still fix everything.
“Since he has said that he will agree to let us share the loss by percentage, no problem, they should come for the estimate. I just hope the percentage division will favour me because things are difficult now.”
It was however gathered that after occupants from neighbouring apartments intervened, both parties (landlord and tenant) later agreed on a percentage division of the total amount spent on the repairs.
