By Amos Aar
THE BENUE State Government has disclosed that it will employ over ten thousand youths for the distribution of fire extinguishers and enforcement of its usage in homes and public places across the state.
Governor Hyacinth Alia made this pronouncement on Saturday in Makurdi at the launch of the Nigeria Fire Extinguisher Sticker (NFES), a project meant to control fire and ensure prompt response to any fire incident.
According to Principal Special Assistant (PSA) to the governor on Media and Publicity/Strategic Communications, Bridget Kyado, the state government has already commenced the project which has provision for the servicing of fire extinguishers as part of efforts to not only ensure safety but also generate employment according to the Governor.
Alia, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Joseph Alakali, said over 10,000 sustainable employment would be provided under the project.
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“The process of distribution, servicing and enforcement will provide over 10,000 sustainable employment opportunities. The service will boost the state internal generated revenue and block economic loophole”, he said.
According to the governor, the initiative will control a situation where fire extinguishers fail at point of usage and “enable arrest and prosecution of fake and wicked servicing vendors who fill fire extinguisher cylinder with cassava flour which increases fire instead of quenching it at most critical point of usage”.
Speaking further on the expected benefits of the project, Alia said it will prevent the use of fire extinguisher cylinder for drug trafficking, terrorism and other crimes.
He described the project as another rebirth and retooling of Benue state fire service to effectively deliver its mandate of fire prevention, response and investigation.
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Governor Alia expressed optimism that the repositioning would boost performance in the committees of agencies and deepening public participation in the state security and public safety, adding that the project was in fulfilment of his promise to harness the enormous potentials in the youth in order to position the state as an investment destination.
“To achieve this task, we have reached out to stakeholders in every sector of which fire safety management is one.
“As universally said and agreed “safety first”. The fire safety sector is one of the most critical sectors of the state and national economy.
“Fire vulnerability of any society grows directly propositional to its development. As your income increase, so your choice of furniture and electronics increases.
“Similarly, our society has a lot of fake electronic, electrical cables, low quality cooking gas cylinders and a lot of other fake products including fire extinguishers. These fake products can be difficult to distinguish from the original ones in the market.
“As a fulfilment of my promise during election and delivery of practical solutions towards the safety of our people, today Benue State is breaking another record of being the first state in Nigeria to flag-off Nigeria Fire Extinguisher Sticker (NFES) project”, Alia said.
Alia who appreciated the Federal Executive Council for approving the project called on the Nigeria Police Force, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Fire Service, Department of State Service (DSS), the Military, Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) and all stakeholders to collaborate with the state fire service towards achieving the objectives of the projects.
He assured youths who will be engaged as Ad-hoc staff in the first phase of the state government’s protection as they carry out their duties, promising to also sustain collaboration with the management of 2TOC Solutions Ltd on mutual ground.
In his remarks, Mr Benson Olatunji, National Coordinator, Nigeria Fire Extinguisher Sticker (NFES) concessionaire and N- Alert Technical partner, Ministry of Interior, Abuja explained that explained that the project would be launched in all states and the FCT and Benue state was chosen to pioneer the project in collaboration with state Bureau of Entrepreneurship and Wealth Creation, the Bureau of Internal Affairs (Fire Department Unit) and Office of the Special Adviser on Security.
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He said, “amongst the many benefits of the programme, important to note is the job creation angle where over 1200 Benue youth were shortlisted and employed immediately as ad-hoc staff who will be employed as career fire service officers at the end of their training.
“Also pertinent to note is that this is the first programme ever to employ such a large number of Benue indigenes across the 23 LGAs in a single exercise in the State. “It is also set to boost the IGR of the state with annual estimated projections of over N1.6 billion. The programme also sets to boost inter and intra governmental collaboration between Federal Government and State Government,” Olatunji said as he commended Governor Alia for his support of the project.
