donates land for Fed Fire service station
ordered 10 new Fire engines
120 new officers
From Chuks Collins, Awka
The documentation and profiling of victims of last Wednesday’s petrol tanker fire incidents at two locations in Onitsha, Anambra state will now hold in their shops at the Ochanja Main market.
This latest directive from the Anambra state government was signed by Mr Emeka Ozumba, the deputy chief press secretary to Gov Willie Obiano.
The exercise was earlier schedule for the Ekwueme Square in Awka but had to be rescheduled to enable the conduct apparently less cumbersome, fraud proof and to ensure its actually real shop owners that would be documented.
Another school of thought observed that since more sympathizers were still visiting them at the scene it would be abnormal for anyone to come to commiserate with them either in cash or kind without meeting anyone on ground.
The latest directive has also been amplified by a communique issued after a meeting between government officials and executive members of the Ochanja Main market union on Friday, October 18, 2019 at the Governor’s L Lodge, Awka.
Moreso, the state government has immediately mapped out four plots of land at Awka for the establishment of a federal Fire station immediately. This was part of the new efforts of the state government to checkmate the abysmal failure of its fire service in rising to the occasion whenever the need arose.
The Secretary of the Ochanja Main market trader’s association, Mr Peter Chibuike, who read out the communique said that the state government’s decision to move the documentation exercise to the market, came after diligent consultations with executives of the market union and other stakeholders.
Consequently, the public and all concerned persons were then directed that the exercise earlier announced to hold on Monday, October 21 at Ekwueme square, Awka, has been shifted to the market scene.
The state government has also set up a 10-man committee consisting of five members of the state executive council and five members of the Ochanja central market union executives to visit the market and interface directly with all persons affected by the unfortunate re incident so as to evaluate damages, identify actual victims and advise government with regard to compensations and other necessary actions.
However in a bid to forestall a repeat failure of the state fire department, the governor has donated a fire engine to the Ochanja central market and ordered the creation of motorable access roads in the market. The directive which was to take immediate effect mandated that a reputable contractor would immediately repair or create access roads within the market where none exists presently.
In its efforts to get the state fire department be more responsive to the challenges of its mandate, especially as the dry season and Yuletide approaches, Gov Obiano has announced ordering ten(10) new fire engines from Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing Ltd.
He equally ordered the employment of one hundred and twenty (120) additional personnel for the state fire service. The department He was also granted additional incentives to adequately motivate fire officers.
It would be recalled that the governor made similar promises when petrol fire from a filling station occurred opposite the Dennis Memorial Grammar School, Onitsha in 2017. He also ordered the immediate recruitment of additional one hundred (100) new fire officers and some fire engines.
A victim of an earlier fire incident at Amawbia roundabout new the Governor’s Lodge who gave her name as Chikaodili Nwaeme whose kiosk was burnt with all her wares lamented that the state government collected their details but has abandoned them since about a year ago.
