PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA—A fire incident that gutted a section of the Rivers State Secretariat Complex on Monday evening has escalated into a subject of major contention, with civil service groups and rights activists alleging the blaze was an act of sabotage. The fire, which reportedly affected offices including the State Crèche for civil servants’ babies, prompted an on-the-spot assessment by Governor Siminalayi Fubara on Tuesday morning.
Governor Fubara, who was greeted by jubilant civil servants, the Head of Service, and newly sworn-in Permanent Secretary, Mr. Austin Ezekiel-Hart, expressed gratitude that the disaster did not claim any lives.
“I came here this morning to see for myself what happened yesterday. It’s really unfortunate, but we give God the glory that no life was lost and the damage was only in one section,” Governor Fubara told journalists following his inspection, according to a statement from his Chief Press Secretary, Nelson Chukwudi.
Renovation Fast-Tracked Amid Safety Concerns
The Governor immediately linked the incident to his administration’s ongoing plans for infrastructure overhaul, noting that the fire underscores the urgency for action.
“We’ve been talking about renovating our foremost secretariat. With this incident, there should be no further delay. Whatever is required by this government to commence that process, we will immediately swing into action,” Fubara declared.
He also commended the Rivers State Fire Service for their swift and effective response, crediting the containment of the fire to previous state investments in fire safety infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the State Head of Service, Dr. (Mrs.) Inyingi Brown, confirmed that an investigation into the cause of the fire is underway. She noted that while the crèche was partly destroyed, the smoke also affected the Civil Servants’ Clinic, and access to the affected areas has been restricted pending a structural integrity assessment by the Ministry of Works engineers.
The fire comes at a period of heightened political tension following the recent suspension of the emergency rule in the state by President Bola Tinubu on September 18, which led to Governor Fubara’s full reinstatement to office.
The Nigerian Civil Service Union and activist Charles Jaja quickly moved to dismiss the possibility of an accident, demanding a comprehensive investigation and suggesting the fire was deliberate.
Union representative Chukwuka Osoma stated the incident was “suspicious,” noting, “We don’t believe it was ordinary because we’ve never experienced such an incident in this secretariat. The government must get to the root of it.”
Rights activist Charles Jaja went further, describing the fire as a likely act of sabotage. Jaja drew a direct line between the blaze and the Governor’s recent actions, including the dissolution of the State Pensions Board and the Rivers State Microfinance Agency, which were reconstituted during the six-month emergency period.
The activist also referenced Governor Fubara’s recent public warning to top civil servants who he accused of violating service rules during his absence. At a recent swearing-in ceremony, Fubara had vowed to hold them accountable, stating: “The records are there, and at the right time, I’ll bring them up one after the other.”
The timing and location of the fire, a section housing sensitive agencies, have fueled the claims that the incident may be connected to the ongoing administrative restructuring and the potential retrieval of records following the change in government leadership. The investigation, the Head of Service confirmed, is proceeding, with the goal of ascertaining the actual cause of the blaze.
