A civil society group, the Centre for Media Advocacy (CMA), has lauded the enormous safety and security advocacy embarked upon by the new management of the Federal Fire Service (FFS). This includes an aggressive maintenance culture, enhanced productivity, manpower development, institutional turnaround, and the procurement of fire accoutrements and equipment. These findings stem from our organization’s research and evaluation development index, which involved feedback mechanisms, checks, workplace standards, response times, performance indicators, and proficiency parameters, including the effectiveness of various initiatives by the management and staff since the present leadership took over the mantle of affairs.
In a press release signed by the organization’s Executive Director, Mahmud Bello, the CMA noted that fire safety awareness campaigns and policies have been aggressively advocated for like never before in the annals of history until the assumption of office by the Controller-General of the Federal Fire Service, Olumode Samuel Adeyemi. His management has consistently created the needed awareness and sensitization campaigns to drive home the essence of disaster management, fire safety mechanisms, enhanced productivity, and the efficient maintenance of service infrastructure, as well as manpower and capacity building across the entire organization.
According to the release, for the first time since the inception of the service, empirical evidence gathered from the research findings shows high staff morale and workplace esprit-de- corps, resulting from the prompt payment of salaries and allowances. This is coupled with the fact that many management staff and personnel are presently undergoing various courses both within and outside the country, enjoying capacity building, increased emoluments, and the provision of modern fire service equipment and infrastructure, all of which have made the service a desirable place to work.
Consequently, as a result of the change management under the present CG over the past year, the service has witnessed tremendous support from Nigerians. This is due to the management’s open-door policy, which includes public training on the proper use of fire extinguishers, partnerships and collaborations with sister agencies, and the appointment of the first female Deputy Controller-General (DCG) in the person of Ijeoma Achi-Okidi. This appointment demonstrates the gender-friendly nature and policies of the new management, being based on merit, seniority, and independent assessment in line with the Federal Character Commission’s guidelines. The service has also witnessed numerous promotions, recording about 88 percent from Assistant Controller-Generals to Deputy Controller-Generals, including junior and line officers who have demonstrated discipline, integrity, teamwork, and loyalty to the country, as enshrined by the present CG.
The CMA observed that the ladder drills, an innovative approach by firefighters, alongside safety mechanism drills in disaster management, have gone a long way in enhancing officers’ skills. These initiatives have motivated them to give their best at all times, boosting their capacity and productivity while risking their lives to save properties and infrastructure during fire incidents and disasters. In furtherance of driving new initiatives, the present management is using individual corporate branding and personalities to drive home their advocacies, for instance, through hashtags such as #NoFireworks, #HarmattanFireSafety, and others too numerous to mention.
To enhance staff manpower development and professionalism, the service has entered into various partnerships with the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) and other organizations to train its information and corporate communications officers in public relations, as well as to induct them into professional bodies. It has also collaborated with institutions such as the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), among others. Furthermore, the service has built a state-of-the-art Quarter Guard Station for inspecting guards of honour when receiving dignitaries and important Nigerians from all sectors of the country, which has further added to the professional standing of the service.
The CMA has reliably gathered that numerous fire-fighting trucks with up-to-date equipment have been purchased for effective performance in reducing fire disasters across the country, including the upgrade and improvement of the Federal Fire Academy at Sheda, Abuja, FCT, for training and capacity building. It is also on record that since the new CG assumed office, many schools, civil society organizations, NGOs, and faith-based organizations have been frequenting the service for excursion purposes, to experience and be taught on the usage of fire service equipment, including operations, fire handling, firefighting techniques, and other methods to reduce fire incidences in schools, homes, and offices, thanks to the well-motivated workforce and culture of the officers. Firefighting training has also gone beyond the borders of the service, as the organization is now training other sister agencies, such as the Nigeria Customs Service, in case of any fire incident in their offices or homes.
In the release, the CMA also applauded the service for its operational efficiency and response time in curtailing the Kano inferno, the fire at the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research, and other incidents too numerous to mention, including properties in Abuja and other parts of the country. The service is also advancing its collaborative efforts and partnerships with stakeholder organizations on how to mitigate fire disasters and enhance fire policy and advocacy in the country, as it recently engaged with stakeholders in a forum to advance fire safety in the Oil and gas sector.
The CMA therefore commends the FFS Controller- General for the bold initiative to inaugurate a task force on public and private building audits, aimed at mapping public buildings nationwide to ascertain their total number and risk categories. This includes inspecting public buildings to determine their level of fire safety and compliance, and making timely and comprehensive recommendations to guard against enforcements, in order to enhance the safety and security of people in both private and public buildings across the country.
In view of the foregoing, CMA hereby calls on the Federal Government to assist the Service in funding these various initiatives of the leadership, including advocacy, training and retraining of officers, as well as capacity development in firefighting, both in our homes and in institutions. This is aimed at boosting productivity, self-esteem and manpower development within the Service. CMA therefore calls for this vision of the Controller-General to be implemented in full and to be sustained.
CMA also calls on Nigerians to promptly provide information whenever a fire incident occurs, in order to help build a virile, peaceful, disaster-free society and a conducive environment.
The cso further enjoins public-spirited organizations and individuals to partner and collaborate with the FFS in manpower development and in funding its major activities, with a view to reducing the incidence of fire disasters across the country. CMA equally calls on the Federal Government to increase budgetary allocation to the Service in order to enhance the well-being of the country and to reduce fire emergencies to the barest minimum.