Ahead the inauguration of the panel of inquiry as promised by Governor Udom Emmanuel, to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the collapsed Reigners International Church building, which claimed several lives at the weekend, in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, more revelations have emerged as to why the building collapsed.
According to the main contractor, Mr Idorenyin White, whose company, White Steel Integrated Services (WSIS), undertook the roofing of the building, the site engineers and the church building committee failed to heed his early warning signal.
Continuing in buttressing his position with a view to exonerating himself, the roofing contractor, who doubles as the Managing Director of the company said: “Honestly speaking, I strongly advised that the scaffold should not be removed, but nobody listened to me because they have senior engineers in the church. They even brought one Engineer Inyang and the man also advised that the scaffold be allowed to remain until the poline and metals are tight, but no one would listen.”
Although he explained that the steel used for the construction of the building was of standard, the contractor revealed the building was only hurriedly filled because of the programme.
His words: “The building was not filled, it is during this programme period that they filled the building, the whole thing was compacted. Even the side beam was not fully cast and the side beam in the middle was small; I did my work well, the fault is not from us, the fault is from the civil work,” he submitted.
In his counter argument, the site engineer, who supervised the work, Anietie Augustine, linked the problem to the roofing and not the building structure, denying ever directing that the scaffold be removed.
“It is not the walls that had defect because even as the roof fell, the walls were still standing, It is the roof that was the problem. I was not the one that approved the roofing, one Engineer Uwem Okoko brought a team of engineers to come and look at the whole work then design the roof that would fit the building,” he explained.
Nigerian Tribune gathered that the General Overseer of the church, Akan Weeks, apparently anticipating thousands of visitors that would throng the 10,000 capacity building, had ordered that the central scaffold be removed “to create greater space for visitors.”
Apparently disturbed by this case of professional compromise, the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Akwa Ibom State chapter, had swung into action with preliminary investigation into the tragedy.
The state NSE chairman, Engineer Mfon Udoikpong, who led other members to inspect the scene of the incident, said no stone would be left unturned in the process of unravelling the immediate and remote causes of the accident.
“We are going to conduct our independent investigation on the matter,” he assured, adding that they would work in close collaboration with the state government panel of inquiry, with a view to arriving at a logical conclusion.
Meanwhile, donations of blood, money and other facilities in aid of the affected families continue in various hospitals in the state.
Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, who personally attended the solemn assembly to pray for the victims at the Government House Banquet Hall, commiserated with Governor Emmanuel, the victims and the people of the state.
He assured that the governor, who is his personal friend, would not stand alone in this period of grief.
Also, the State House of Assembly, chaired by the Speaker, Onofiok Luke, at the plenary attended by 21 out of the 26 members, commiserated with the governor and the people of the state over the unfortunate incident.
At the end of the session, the lawmakers on courtesy call to the governor, donated N3 million as part of the House’s contribution to assist victims scattered across various hospitals in the state.
The governor thanked the lawmakers, saying he had been strengthened by such show of solidarity and commitment towards victims of the disaster.
Worried by the conflicting casualty figures being bandied by different authorities, including the police, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Charles Udo, urged the public to disregard such claims, saying the state government was still working to establish the authentic number of the dead.
Udo, himself a victim of the accident, who spoke from his hospital bed at the Ibom Specialist Hospital, said he had directed officials of his ministry to take stock of the casualties with a view to arriving at the accurate figure.
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