The Abia State government says it will investigate the cause of the fire incident that engulfed one of the hostels of the Federal Government Girls College, Umuahia, with a view to punishing anyone or group found culpable in the act.
This was contained in a statement released by the state house on Monday, March 3, 2014.
Governor Theodore Orji gave the assurance at the school during a visit to assess the situation. He recalled that this was not the first time a fire incident was happening in the institution in recent times and assured however, that it will be the last.
He sympathized with the students who lost their belongings in the inferno and donated the sum of N2 million to the principal of the school to help the affected students replace their destroyed items.
Chief Orji stated that it was his primary responsibility to provide security to the students and thanked God that no life was lost in the incident.
The governor described the institution as a great school which has recorded many achievements in academics and in other areas and stated that he was proud of the institution. He maintained that he sees the school as his responsibility as long as it is located in Abia.
Earlier, while conducting the governor round the affected hostel, the Acting Principal of the school, Dr. Earnest Chukwuka explained that the fire started while the students were in the classroom for night prep, pointing out that all the 119 students residing in the hostel lost their personal belongings.
He thanked the governor for sending fire fighting trucks to put off the fire as well as his continued fatherly attention to the school, revealing that the governor always comes to their assistance when they call on him.
In his comment, the Parents Teachers Association chairman, sir G.O.C Nnaji stated that one of the problems confronting the school is accommodation, explaining that the insecurity situation in the North had forced many parents to relocate their children back home and appealed to the governor to come to their aid.
