The Akwa Ibom State Government will probe the collapsed building deaths, Governor Udom Emmanuel said yesterday.
He said in a broadcast that a “high powered” commission of inquiry would be set up.
Emmanuel said he was in the church when the incident occurred and personally supervised the rescue operations and evacuation of the injured to the hospital.
He said: “A high-powered panel of inquiry is being constituted to ascertain the immediate and remote factors leading to the collapse of the church building with a view to forestalling the re-occurrence of any such incident and bring to book any persons found to have compromised professional standards in the construction of the building’’
He commiserated with the families of the victim of the disaster and announced that the state government would bear the medical expenses of the injured.
He appealed for calm and prayed for those in critical condition in hospitals.
While urging the Christian community in the state to show their support love and understanding in prayers, Governor Udom called on people to avoid undue speculation because the situation was being given the best possible attention.
He said: “I personally supervised the rescue operation and evacuation of of the injured to the hospital; I directed all emergency organization agencies of Government and corporate organization especially the construction companies to be involved in the exercise, they acted promptly and I commend them.”
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in the State had earlier expressed sadness over the tragic incident although it said it was avoidable.
A statement by Publicity Secretary Itwa Iwak, said the cruel fate that visited Akwa Ibom people at the Reigners Bible Church was due to human error and was avoidable.
The party welcomed the decision of the government to set up a panel of enquiry to look into the remote and immediate causes responsible for the sad event.
The statement reads: “It is our hope that the panel will do a thorough job and that government will be guided by its reports in formulating such policies that will make sure we do not suffer such monumental tragedies in the future.
“The APC believes and hopes that as this great country redirects its resources and innate potentials towards a more secure, sustainable and prosperous future, avoidable accidents like the Reigners Bible church mishap will be blotted out of our existence by the patriotic commitment of all citizens to the APC’s CHANGE ethos which is designed to enthrone an ordered, disciplined and prosperous country for all.”
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