By Joe Udo
PORT HARCOURT (CONVERSEER) – A section of the Rivers State Secretariat Complex in Port Harcourt was on Monday evening gutted by fire, destroying offices and property, just a week after Governor Siminalayi Fubara dissolved the Rivers State Pensions Board.
The fire, which broke out after office hours, reportedly started on the ground floor of the Podium Block of the nine-storey structure. Although the cause was traced to an electrical fault, officials confirmed that the office of the recently dissolved Pensions Board, located nearby, was not affected by the blaze.
Governor Fubara had dissolved the board the previous week as part of a broader administrative restructuring of the state’s pension management system. The move was followed by directives to review pension operations and reposition the sector for greater accountability.
Confirming the fire incident, the Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyinge Brown, said there were no casualties. She explained that the swift response of multiple fire agencies helped prevent the inferno from spreading to other parts of the building.
“We were informed that there was a fire incident at the right wing, ground floor of Podium Block, and we immediately made calls to the Rivers State Fire Service, and they responded promptly,” Brown said.
“We also called other partners of the state, such as Renaissance, Federal Fire Service and the military, who promptly sent their fire trucks. It’s a combined effort, and as we speak, you can see that the fire has been contained.
“We thank God, and we thank His Excellency Sir Siminalayi Fubara for being proactive in rehabilitating the Fire Service before this time. If not for his investment in the Fire Service, this situation would have been worse,” she added.
She urged civil servants to take extra safety precautions by switching off and unplugging all electrical appliances before leaving the office to prevent future incidents.
The Rivers State Government has assured that rehabilitation works on the affected sections of the secretariat will commence promptly. Both Governor Fubara and the immediate past Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), had earlier approved the refurbishment of the secretariat complex as part of ongoing infrastructural improvements.
The recent administrative shake-up, including the dissolution of the Pensions Board, comes amid wider efforts by the Fubara administration to strengthen governance structures in the state.
