Association Advocates Safety Commission In Anambra

Association Advocates Safety Commission In Anambra

Raymond Ozoji, Awka

The Nigerian Institution of Safety Engineers has called for the establishment of a safety commission in Anambra state. The commission, if established, would regulate every activity in the state to ensure public safety.

This was the crux of the matter yesterday at the installation of the pioneer chairman Awka branch Engr. Martin Onyedikachukwu Agbili and inaugural lecture at King David hotel Awka.

The emphasis on the occasion was the culture of safe practices at home, workplace and all other places involving human inter-personal relationships.

National chairman of the institution Engr., Adeyemi Biodun Oyedepo, while addressing the august gathering affirmed that safety was the bedrock of the engineering profession. Oyedepo maintained that no engineering profession lacked inherent safety precautions.

He expressed concern about incessant building collapses, noting that engineers were not responsible for such damages but those who contracted the services of quacks to undertake building projects.

Oyedepo however called on government to assist certified engineers in the country fight quackery even as he noted that there were  disciplinary measures meted out to erring members of the institution.

Guest lecturer on the occasion, Mr.Chike Iwoba, whose lecture hinged on “Promoting Safety Practices In Anambra State”, stressed the need for safety gadgets to be placed at vantage positions at workplaces as well as emergency exits in the event of unforeseen contingencies.

Iwoba also stressed the dire need for government to establish a safety commission in Anambra state just as its counterpart in Lagos state. He said the commission would be an institution of its own to carry out risk assessments as well as assess the level of safety in companies in terms of providing personal protective equipment for workers and ascertain if the lives of workers were endangered at the workplace.

The guest lecturer equally recommended the establishment of a crisis management committee to help educate and sensitise the public on the need to be safety conscious at all times while urging government to also set a day aside that would be known as safety day wherein seminars and workshops would be organised to sensitise people on safety practices.

The newly installed pioneer chairman of the Awka branch of the Nigerian Institution of Safety Engineers Engr. Martin Onyedikachukwu Agbili said his mission was to prevail on government to set up a safety commission which according to him, would be called Anambra State Safety Commission.

Agbili stated that the commission would function as a regulatory body to ensure public safety.

The chairman who disclosed that the institution was founded in 2005, with Awka being the first inaugurated chapter,  said government could enact legislation to help entrench safe practices in order to reduce accidents, adding that he would galvanise other safety professionals to achieve  the objective.

Meanwhile, chairman of the Nigerian Society of Engineers Awka branch Engr. Edmond Chukwuemeka Nkalu said that safety was the pillar of all professions especially the engineering profession .Nkalu who stated that engineering positions in government should be left for engineers who are properly trained to man such positions, maintained that the Nigerian Society of Engineers would continue to push for the establishment of safety commission in Anambra state as such commission would help with proactive measures to curb fatalities in the near future.

Sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission in Anambra state Mr. Sunday Michael Ajayi said that the commission was not in the safety campaign alone but a collective responsibility noting that it is pertinent for people to support safety ideals that promotes a safe environment for all and sundry.