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GNFS to blacklist contractors for poor
performance
Accra, Nov. 28, Ghanadot/GNA - The management of Ghana
National Fire Service (GNFS) on Wednesday warned that it
would blacklist and withdraw licenses of fire safety
contractors who performed poorly.
It said the new Fire Service Act 537 of 2003 and Legislative
Instrument (L.I) 1724 gave it the authority to ensure that
public residential accommodations, hospitals, offices,
factories and nightclubs acquired fire certificates and
prosecute offenders.
Mr Philip A. Mensah, Director of Fire Safety of GNFS gave
the warning at a sensitisation workshop for members of Fire
Protection Association of Ghana (FIPAG) in Accra.
He said under L.I.1724 owners of public places were required
to provide adequate means of escape, fire fighting
equipment, fire detection and warning systems on their
premises to achieve the desired and satisfactory fire
safety.
Mr Mensah said with effect from next year, the service would
begin implementing its guidelines for issuing permits and
certificates to contractors to perform specific categories
of jobs.
He said service personnel would inspect premises of
contractors and scrutinise all necessary documents submitted
to ensure they were adequate before registered.
Mr Mensah said the Service had not ceded training to the
contractors and cautioned that no contractor should
undertake any training programme apart from the usual
training of workers in an organisation on fire protection
facilities installed by the contractor.
"The Service would organise periodic and regular training
programmes for contractors to update and upgrade their
knowledge and skills to ensure they are able to organise
training programmes satisfactorily before allowed to
undertake training on their own," he added.
Mr Joe Idun, Chairman of FIPAG, who spoke on the topic: "The
role of FIPAG in fire prevention and protection" said the
association was formed to bring Fire Protection Service
Providers (FPSP) together to ensure members satisfied the
acceptable standards in quality of goods and services
provided to their clients.
He pledged the commitment of the association to become a
formidable body to regulate activities of fire engineering
consultants, installers, servicing and sale of fire fighting
equipment to the requisite standards as stipulated by law.
Mr Idun said the association would promote and foster good
working relations with the GNFS, Ministry of the Interior
and Fire Service Council (FSC) to ensure proper
classification and grading of FPSP on their performance.
GNA
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