Recent upsurges of fire disasters in Ghana: Can’t it be stopped?

The popular saying that 'fire is a good servant but a bad master' has yet again shown it master-face in the Cantamanto Market in Accra. On Sunday morning 5 May 2013 we woke up to be told that fire guttered the Cantamanto Market, the 'world bank' of second-hand clothering in the country and destroyed properties worth millions of cedis.

This is not the maiden fire disaster that Ghana has experience nor could it be the last. Several fire disasters has occurred across the country in recent years including the Ministry of Foreign Affair, Kumasi central market, and many uncountable places. The key questions worth asking are whether Ghana is being cursed by God as some alleges? Could it be seer negligence on the part of fire stakeholders? Or it is the general attitude of Ghanaians that is costing the country? Whatever the answers are or whosoever have the answers, we must begin to realize that the ramifications of these fires do not affect only one single individual; the owner losses his/her goods and property, the public (consumers) cannot get goods to buy, and the government losses a lot of money from taxes. Also, continue occurrence of fire outbreaks will lead to shortage of goods and services resulting to hunger and starvation.

Frankly speaking, individual property owners have a role to play in fire prevention. We build properties without plans and permits, without using quality materials, without deploying good technical expertise, and without putting fire precautionary measures such emergency exit points and fire extinguishers as well as illegal electricity connections. The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) have to be blame for not performing adequately their constitutionally mandated roles in educating the public on fire prevention and control and fire fighting. Perhaps, I may say the GFS are under-resourced in terms of expertise. The government on another side failed to put up adequate structures and resources to enable the fire service to perform their functions appropriately. The Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies together with the various Planning Units have done very little to enforce building regulations and structuring and provision of adequate infrastructure.

In fact, some people say that Ghanaians have short memory and this turns to be true in many instances. We always cry foul during crisis but failed woefully in implementing solutions. We turn to blame others for problems rather than focusing on the root causes of such atrocities. It often said that the way a man makes his bed is how he must lie on it. But as Ghanaians, we have left our pots unprotected and our foods now get burns.

It is time for us to change our attitudes from blame-gaming to the adoption of practical solutions to our everyday problems including the frequent fire disasters. We need us individuals be minded of activities that are disaster prone such as illegal connections and use of material of poor quality for constructional purposes. The GNFS must up their role in educating the general public of fire protection and control. The Government should provide adequate resources for the Fire Services and other security agencies to enable them play their meaningful roles in protecting lives and properties. All stakeholders must work collaboratively and efficiently to prevent future outbreaks of fire and other man-made disasters.

All Ghanaians irrespective of your social and economic class have a role to play in ensuring national security. As Confucius said, 'If there were one word that could act as a standard of conduct for one's entire life, perhaps it would be 'thoughtfulness.' So we should learn our lessons and begin to do things rights to avoid future occurrences. There is nothing we can do to recover those properties already being destroyed by the fire. I share my sympathy with all that lost their properties and perhaps, lives. May God guide us all!

By:
Abu Ibrahim Azabre
[email protected]
0240393109
May 6, 2013