Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has directed the immediate rehabilitation of the State Secretariat Complex in Port Harcourt following Monday’s fire outbreak that affected part of the facility.
Naijaonpoint reports that Fubara, who visited the site on Tuesday morning to assess the damage, described the incident as “unfortunate,” noting that the affected section served as a crèche for the children of civil servants.
According to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Nelson Chukwudi, the fire was confined to one wing of the building and was swiftly contained by firefighters.
The governor expressed relief that there were no casualties.
“I came here this morning to see for myself what happened yesterday. It’s really unfortunate, but we give God all the glory that no life was lost and the damage was only in one section,” Fubara said.
He explained that the incident had accelerated plans already underway for the full-scale renovation of the state’s foremost administrative complex.
Fubara said the fire outbreak had removed any excuse for further delay.
“We’ve been talking about the renovation of our foremost secretariat. With this particular incident, there should be no further delay. Whatever is required by this government to commence that process, we will immediately swing into action,” he assured.
The governor commended the Rivers State Fire Service for their swift response, noting that the intervention prevented the inferno from spreading to other parts of the complex.
“Before the emergency rule, we took our time to invest in the fire service. I wonder what would have happened if we didn’t have a formidable and functional fire service,” he added.
Fubara, who was received at the Secretariat by a large crowd of civil servants, the Head of Service, and several permanent secretaries, including the newly sworn-in Mr Austin Ezekiel-Hart, praised the resilience of the state workforce.
He reiterated his administration’s commitment to the welfare of civil servants and the well-being of Rivers residents.
“We’ll continue to do those things that will uplift Rivers people and make them happy,” the governor said.
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