The Caretaker Committee Chairman of Uyo Local Government Council, Barr Mfon Ben has advocated the need for proper monitoring of petroleum products currently being sold in filing stations across Akwa Ibom state.
Mr Ben made the appeal when he paid a condolence visit to victims of kerosene explosion at the University of Uyo Teaching, Hospital, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. He harped on the need for regulatory agencies in the state to checkmate the sharp practices perpetrated by these filling stations which had resulted in the loss of lives and properties.
He said, “The quality of petroleum products we are using needs to be checked. It may have been adulterated, knowing that the current economic situation in the country is pushing people to become desperate. The products sold at these filling stations needs to be investigated to ensure that if the problem was from the quality of the product, the government should close down these outlets and appropriate disciplinary action taken against them. This shows that there is a widespread of adulterated petroleum products in circulation. And that means people should be careful how they use kerosene and other petroleum products. “
A victim of one of the explosions, Mr. Nsikak Michael narrated amidst tears how his children aged 4 and 6 died due to burns they also suffered in the incident. He revealed that the hospital management had requested the sum of N50,000 as payment before their corpses could be released for burial. He also stated that he had spent over N150,000 on medical bills since he was admitted at the hospital. He used the opportunity to appeal to kind hearted individuals and the government to assist him financially to foot his medical bills.
At the intensive care unit of the hospital, a nursing mother and her three months old baby suffered yet another kerosene explosion in her shop at Nung Ukim. A relative of the victim stated that the explosion occurred when the woman tried to lit a kerosene lamp in her shop. It was also gathered that her shop was badly burnt in the fire incident. At the time of filing this report, the nursing mother was currently on life support and may require facial reconstruction surgery as her entire face was severely damaged in the incident.
A doctor at the hospital who spoke with me revealed that, there has been over seven admitted cases of burns attributed to kerosene explosion within the last few weeks.
Responding, the Council Boss bemoaned the current spate of fire incidents attributed to kerosene explosions across Uyo Metropolis. He promised as a matter of urgency to take up the medical bills of the affected families.
“It is very regrettable seeing such a magnitude of family disaster. It is also a disaster for Uyo Local Government Area and Akwa Ibom State. This is a situation of regulating our system because first of all, the problem may have arise from the quality of kerosene that they had bought to use at home. If the kerosene was of good quality in compliance with standards of the regulatory bodies, provided for by our laws, it would not have exploded no matter the condition.”
“To the families, we will see how to take care of the hospital bills. We’re also calling on public spirited individuals to come in and help these families. No amount of money can really compensate their losses, but we could also be of assistance to the families to cushion the effects of what has happened to them”, the Transition Chairman said.
The Chairman reechoed the need for synergy between petroleum regulatory and monitoring bodies and the security agencies in ensuring that petroleum products sold in filing stations across the state are up to standards, while restating the Council’s readiness to put up modalities in place to forestall a reoccurrence of such incidents.
“We are committed to ensuring that what you were see today do not occur again. We need to call up regular meetings to assess situations. We need to create awareness campaigns in our communities to enlighten the general public on the proper use of petroleum products and its dangers. Essentially, the regulatory bodies and security agencies needs to check the quality of petroleum products that is being sold out to the public to avoid situations like this. Life is very important and should not be taken for granted.”, he stated.
0 comments :
Post a Comment