Chief Fire Officer pays familiarisation visit to Ashanti

Mampong (Ash), Aug. 11, GNA - Mr Felix Kwame Ferkah, the Chief Fire Officer on Thursday urged personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) to live up to the expectations of society.

He said they should first consider themselves as professionals, trained at the expense of the taxpayer to provide prompt, efficient and dedicated service to the public in times of need.

Mr Ferkah said this during his interaction with senior officers of the Sekyere West District Assembly at Asante-Mampong, as part of a three-day working visit to the Ashanti Region.

Outlining his vision for the Service within the next five years, the new Chief Fire Officer said, "I hope to see a National Fire Service devoid of complaints of water shortage, indiscipline, low moral and poor equipment".

He, therefore, appealed to district assemblies and other corporate organisations for assistance, emphasising, "We all have a duty towards the state and in the case of fire fighting, this cannot be achieved by the GNFS alone".

Mr Ferkah commended the Sekyere West District Assembly and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mampong, Mr Peter Abum Sarkodie for jointly rehabilitating the vandalised Mampong Fire Station and fire engine at a cost of 38 million cedis, and urged them to continue to show keen interest in the activities of the Service.

Mr Haruna Oppong-Boateng, the District Chief Executive, in an address delivered on his behalf by Mr Emmanuel Aidoo, Deputy District Co-ordinating Director, appealed to the Chief Fire Officer for a modern fire tender with at least 1,500 gallons capacity.

He said, "The only aged fire tender at Mampong also serves nearby Afigya-Sekyere and Ejura-Sekyedumase districts.

The DCE said all the three districts had very large commercial towns and therefore, there was the need for the area to have a modern fire tender that could response swiftly to major fire outbreaks.

Mr Haruna-Boateng congratulated the Chief Fire Officer for his appointment and hoped he would bring his vast experiences to bear on the operations of the Service.

He gave the assurance that the assembly would continue to support the Service to deliver efficient and prompt services.

Mr Ferkah's maiden visit to the Ashanti Region took him to Bekwai, Mamponteng, Ejura and Mampong, where he inspected fire stations. Mr Obeng Dankwa, the Ashanti Regional Fire Officer and some senior officials of the Service accompanied him.