LIMAN PULLED OUT AS CGF AS AREGBESOLA WARNS OF MORE FIRE OUTBREAKS

 

Aregbesola, flanked by Dr. Liman & Karebo, Acting CGF

"Dr. Ibrahim Liman, during his stint as the nation's No 1 Fire Chief, brought about unprecedented growth and development as well as a much needed revolution in the service on assumption of office as the Comptroller General of the Federal Fire Service in 2019." Aregbesola.

"I am retiring as a fulfilled individual, with the confidence that the officers behind will be able to carry on and build more on my legacy." Outgone CGF Liman.

"It has been an honour working with the outgoing CG because, he has brought to bear his wealth of knowledge on officers of the Service and has trained firemen abroad in partnership with other government agencies." Karebo.

Nigerians have been asked to embrace the right fire fighting attitudes as there will be more incidents of man-made fire outbreaks as the dry season sets in.

This was the advisory by the Honourable Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, at the Pulling Out Parade of the immediate past Fire Chief of the Federation, Dr. Ibrahim Liman, in Abuja, the nation's capital.

Aregbesola, while speaking at the occasion, advised that more rigorous awareness campaigns on fire safety and prevention should be embarked upon by the Federal Fire Service and its counterparts across the states, as that will enhance the right fire fighting attitudes in Nigerians.

The Honourable Minister, in his address on Thursday disclosed that it is very critical for fire services across the nation to intensify advocacy campaign on fire prevention because, this is the time of the year that fire accidents occur at a higher rate, noting that, most items presently, are combustible due to the hot weather.

Detailing the achievements of Dr.  Liman CGF, the Honourable Minister stated that, "it will be on record that the expansion of the service which began in 2015 from the fitful presence in Lagos and Abuja since its inception in 1901, was brought to a head under his tenure, the FFS is proudly now in all the states of the federation.

"Although there are naturally occurring fire accidents, most accidents are man-made, accidentally, negligently or on purpose, (arson), and this can be prevented mostly if there is enough awareness. Nigerians should be made to know the various categories of fire and what the first responders should do before the arrival of the fire officers." He said.

The Minister recalled that the federal government has spent N10.4 billion on fire infrastructure upgrade in 2021 and some of the infrastructure include 44 firefighting engines, 15 water tankers, 15 rapid intervention fire engines and 20 basic life support ambulance which were distributed across the states.

Extolling the virtue and legacy of the former CG, Aregbesola stressed that Dr. Ibrahim Liman, during his stint as the nation's No 1 Fire Chief, brought about unprecedented growth and development as well as a much needed revolution in the service on assumption of office as the Comptroller General of the Federal Fire Service in 2019.

“Under Dr. Liman, the service established six additional training schools totaling eight, one in each geopolitical zone. The FFS has also procured firefighting vehicles and materials at an unprecedented rate under him and commissioned aerial firefighting equipment which was the first of its kind in Nigeria and also, reduced the fire emergency response time to seven minutes."

Dr. Ibrahim Liman, in  his farewell speech, stressed that the successes achieved under his tenure were made possible by the support of President Muhammadu Buhari, the Minister of Interior, personnel of the service and the media.

Liman, who was the pioneer Chief of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT) Fire Service, disclosed that his growth through the ranks in the Fire Service has been rewarding and worthwhile. He further stated that he is retiring as a fulfilled individual, with the confidence that the officers he has left behind will be able to carry on and build more on his legacy.

"I spent 17 years with the Niger State Fire Service before I was invited to start what is today known as the FCT Fire Service and I headed FCT Fire Service for 13 years. Then I was invited by the then Minister of Interior Comrade Abba Moro having heard of my work, to come over to the Federal Fire Service. This is how I found myself in the FFS.

"When I came on board, we had 23 trucks but, as at the time I was handing over on the 30th of December 2021, I handed over 69 state-of-the-art fire trucks. I took over 17 water tankers of 10,000 litres capacity, I handed over 32 of the same, from two ambulances to 20, 19 utility vehicles to 56 and increased our staff strength to more than 6, 000 among many other achievements such as the production of a National Fire Policy for the country which we never had. We reviewed the National Fire Safety Code, Standard Operating Procedure and Disciplinary Code which are some of my last assignments." He stated.

Meanwhile, Acting Comptroller General of the FFS, Samson Karebo, in his speech, disclosed that it has been an honour working with the outgoing CG because, he has brought to bear his wealth of knowledge on officers of the Service and has trained firemen abroad in partnership with other government agencies.

"The Federal Fire Service has received 2,845 fire calls in 2021 and has rescued 260 emergencies, saves 587 lives while 136 were lost.

He further added that, the estimated property saved is worth N18,996. 47 trillion while the estimated property lost is N3,045.27 trillion and the major cause of the fire in 2021 are electrical equipment related."