By Bassey Bassey The Akwa Ibom capital, Uyo, like other parts of the state has witnessed tremendous infrastructural development since the advent of the...
By Bassey Bassey
The Akwa Ibom capital, Uyo, like other parts of the state has witnessed tremendous infrastructural development since the advent of the current democratic rule in 1999.
Building construction for residential purpose, event centres, filling stations, play ground, churches and educational purpose, has also been on the increase given the vantage position of the state as one of the major oil producing states.
Major cities like Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja had reported cases of building collapse now and then. But such incidents have been a rare occurrence in Akwa Ibom let alone claiming scores of lives.
The collapse of Reigners Bible Church building last Saturday during worship session with the state governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel, who escaped unhurt, in attendance is a shocker to many citizens.
The service was organised for the bishopric enthronement of the founder of the church, Apostle Akan Weeks and had many government functionaries and politicians in attendance.
The state police commissioner, CP Murtala Mani, confirmed that at the end of evacuation late Saturday 27 worshipers died while 37 sustained various degrees of injuries and were being hospitalised in designated hospitals.
As rational beings, sympathisers while condoling with families who lost their loved ones, are also busy trying to figure out the possible cause of such calamity that is rare in this area.
Mr Ita Awak, who is an engineer and a former commissioner in the state, in his condolence message to Akwa Ibom government and the victims’ families, blamed the unfortunate incident on human error.
Awak believes that the cruel fate that visited the people at the Reigners Bible Church was due to human error and, therefore could have been avoided.
“We wouldn’t have had this tragedy if the proper materials were used for the building and roof work.
We wouldn’t have lost the innocent worshipers if we had competent personnel supervising all critical aspects of the construction.
“For the roof to collapse, it means there were serious defects in the structural design or construction of the roof or its support pillars.
“We welcome the decision of our state government to set up a panel of enquiry to look into the remote and immediate causes responsible for the sad event,” Awak said.
Corroborating Awak, a civil engineer, Mr Stephen Imo, said that the church building collapse was caused by poor construction.
Imo, who is a consulting engineer based in Uyo, said that he was not sure whether the church design was suitable for the swampy topography, where the church is sited.
“I passed here not too long ago. This building couldn’t have been completed by now,” Imo said.
He also noted that the church construction must have been hastily done to meet the target date of the bishopric consecration of the founder.
Mr Inemesit Eyo, who is an instrumentalist, said that the high pitch sound system and speakers were capable of dismantling any construction not properly and technically situated.
He attributed the collapse of the church to sound systems and the large crowd that came for bishopric ordination of the founder.
Some persons are even reasoning why a single branch Pentecostal church without diocese should have a bishop.
This set of thinkers are the behind the notion that the collapsed church was caused by unseen spiritual forces.
Bishop Bassey Ukim of the Brotherhood of Cross and Star Congregation believes that the incident was not ordinary.
He said that bishopric enthronement was a new development in the Pentecostal churches unlike the Catholic, the Anglican and the Methodist churches that had well laid hierarchical arrangement that climaxed in bishop or archbishop.
“We are far from God. We are now looking for money and celebration. If the church had prayed and handed over the ceremony unto God, the incident could have been averted,” Ukim opined.
Speaking in the same vein, Miss Glory Bassey, who claimed to know some persons that had lost their lives in the incident, wondered whether God is no more the same yesterday, today and forever.
Bassey quoted Hebrew chapter 13: 8 of the Holy Bible, which says that God is the same yesterday, today and forever and questioned why there was no revelation of the collapse as was in the era of prophets Elijah and Elisha.
A young worshipper, Okon Johnson, who claimed that he narrowly jumped out when the building collapsed, said that the incident was caused by God.
Johnson explained that the incident was to teach us a lesson and to draw us closer to God.
But a cleric, Pastor Inyangedu John, disagreed, wondering how a loving and merciful God could bring out his children only for them to die in such gruesome manner.
John said that nobody had explanation for the terrible incident but only God.
Mrs Yeneime Ekpo, another worshiper, who also escaped unhurt, said, “we that escaped, not that we are lucky than those that died but we escaped by the special grace of God.”
Some persons have described the fateful day as black Saturday in Akwa Ibom wondering why such calamity should befall the state that is named after Almighty God.
The name Akwa Ibom means “great and huge” and is often referred to by the indigenes as Akwa Abasi Ibom state.
Reasoning from this angle, Mr Uduak Akpan, a member of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), urged the citizens to pray and seek the face of God more than ever before.
Akpan sees the incident as a bad omen in the state that is even free from Boko Haram attack and is not often susceptible to militant onslaught.
The state branch of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) in a statement signed by its chairman, Dr Sylvanus Ukafia, has appealed for patience and calm among the body of Christ.
Ukafia also urged the Christian community in the state to remain prayful while condoling with the victims’ families and the leadership and members of the Reigners Bible Church for the calamity.
Meanwhile the state governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel, who is a deacon in Qua Iboe Church Nigeria, has appealed to the citizens to remain calm and pray for the injured for speedy recovery.
In a statewide broadcast to the citizens on Sunday, the governor advised the people to avoid undue speculation as the situation was being given the best of attention possible by the state government.
Emmanuel declared Sunday and Monday of that week as days of mourning and prayers for the victims’ families and the injured. He has also directed that a solemn assembly be organised on Tuesday afternoon to round off the two days mourning.
The state government also directed the arrest of the contractor that handled the construction of the collapsed church building.
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