Wednesday,
January 28, 2015
Folks, I am now more than
persuaded that the spate of fire outbreaks at important state (not government)
installations cannot be caused by faulty electricity cables, transformers, or
air conditioners at offices. My hunch is that there is much instigation behind
it to cause havoc and undermine the
government. In truth, then, my position must be clear: that the fire outbreaks
are politically motivated.
Those hiding behind such a
dastardly act to destroy state property and blame it on the government's incompetence
or to create disaffection for the government thereby should bow their heads in
shame.
I don't want to point any finger
at any particular political camp but the persistent occurrence (recurrence) of
these fire outbreaks throughout the country cannot just be happening on the
spur of faulty equipment.
From burning down markets all
over the country and electricity transformers of the Electricity Company of
Ghana to many other materials elsewhere, attention has now been shifted to
vital installations such as the medical stores of the ministry of health.
Barely two weeks ago, it was the Central medical Stores in Tema that were
razed. The burning down of electricity cables in a makeshift warehouse in
Kumasi had occurred earlier.
Now, it is the turn of the
Medical Stores of the Tamale Teaching Hospital
in the Northern Region, which went up in flames this morning, as
reported by MyjoyOnline whose correspondent (Hashmin Mohammed) reported that
“lots of drugs have been burnt”.
“At the moment as we speak now,
fire officials have been able to bring the situation under control,” Hashmin
added.
(Source:
http://www.myjoyonline.com/news/2015/January-28th/tamale-medical-stores-go-up-in-flames.php#sthash.mEtZDEPy.dpuf).
Folks, anybody doing a
dispassionate assessment of the fire hazard should come to a clear conclusion
that these fire outbreaks are caused by those seeking to cause public panic and
sabotage the government. Don't ask me to provide evidence. Just analyze the
situation yourselves, and you should arrive at that conclusion. If you cannot,
then, leave me alone to do my educated guesswork.
The truth, though, is that burning
down important national installations won't solve anybody's
"political" problems. These
acts of sabotage have dire consequences for everybody, not only the government.
Even those masterminding them will come to realize too late that they have been
driven by hatred for the government to do acts that have caused irreparable
damage and will negatively influence governance, assuming that the Mahama-led
administration loses Election 2016. How will they repair the damage?
I am convinced that once fire
outbreaks have become the most preferred political weapon, they will continue
to be used at will. Those behind the arson will intensify their efforts until
one or two of the perpetrators are caught in the act to expose them.
That is why I am disturbed that
the government isn't acting decisively to use its wide national security and
intelligence services on that score. These institutions could by now have
established effective agent networks and used many other opportunities (including
electronic surveillance of important installations) to detect clandestine acts
of sabotage, even before they occur.
Mounting short-circuit television
or cameras at such institutions to detect goings-on shouldn't be difficult if
the government sits up to do the proper thing and to make fire prevention a
major national agenda. The citizens must be woken up to play their part in
monitoring installations. There is much ado about a National Sanitation Day but
nothing about the damaging fire outbreaks. What sort of governance style is
this?
Added to this havoc is the
performance of the Ghana National Fire Service, which seems overwhelmed by the
spate of fire outbreaks. Indeed, the GNFS is more of a mere employment avenue
than an institution that can help solve fire problems. It is choked with
personnel who can't be trusted to solve fire-related problems either because
they are not properly trained or equipped for the job. Just take a quick glance
at the personnel and you shouldn't miss the mark to know that they are more
bent toward showing off in their uniforms than doing what they are in service
to do.
A few friends have told me about
some kind of apathy among the rank and file for various reasons. There is talk
of nepotism and all the negative traits that undermine national security. The
recycling of Gaisie to become the Chief Fire Officer won't solve any problem
unless the government rejigs the entire GNFS to eliminate the deadwood and plug
all the loopholes.
In addition, the government must
consider the rampant fire outbreaks as a major national security risk and adopt
quick measures to tackle the havoc. The most important of all measures should
be equipping the GNFS to the hilt to do its assignments. I hear fire hydrants
aren't even available or functioning to expedite their work. How?
Then, the clustering of buildings
and other makeshift structures impedes movement to fire spots, meaning that
inaccessibility is a major problem. The government seems to be too satisfied
with the existing situation, which is disappointing.
As I write now, we don't even
know the outcome of the investigation that the so-called experts from the
United States that the government engaged to investigate the fire outbreaks at
Makola and other places last year. What did they find out and what
recommendations did they make to help solve the problem? Why isn't the
government implementing those recommendations (if they made any at all)?
Folks, you can tell that I am
highly disappointed, if not frustrated or angry, that despite the fire hazard
facing the country, no serious action is being taken to prevent the recurrence.
How can we build Ghana when installations and vital equipment/materials are
burnt to ashes anyhow? And we are talking about the razing of stores housing
medical supplies!! Where else will the arson occur before serious action is
taken to bring the perpetrators to book? Maybe, at the Flagstaff House itself?
Too bad for Ghana!!
I shall return…
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E-mail:
mjbokor@yahoo.com
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