THE Institute of Chartered Chemists of Nigeria (ICCON) has raised awareness of chemical safety and security, stressing the need for government to provide an enabling business environment against hazardous chemical accidents in the country.
The President and Chairman of the institute, Prof. Fanna Inna-Abdulrahman, speaking at the awareness programme held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, said, chemical accidents have over the years cost serious damage to humans and the environment.
The president, who was represented by the Vice President of the Institute, Majek Owoo, at the event, lamented the implication of letting chemicals get to the hands of terrorists is worst than imagined.
According to her, the sensitisation is aimed at ensuring a safe and secure chemical environment, stating that following the prevalence of insecurity, it is important that hazardous chemicals are secured.
She said that in recent years, terrorist activities have been rampant in the country and these are not unconnected with the fact that people, who are handling these chemicals, have evil intentions in handling them. They are not supposed to have access to the chemicals and that is where the security aspect comes in.
“We are talking about safety, preventing these chemicals from affecting the public and as well securing the chemicals from people so that they will not be able to misuse them,” she said.
According to her, preventing this sort of contingency and raising the bar against accidents as well as terrorist attacks is a responsibility shared by governments and industry.
She added that stopping the misuse of chemicals couldn’t be done by rules and regulations alone, insisting that it also requires a high degree of awareness and shared vision.
She said: “We can not separate ourselves from chemicals because on daily bases we need them. But when it comes to abuse in cases where people use them to cause terrible hazards in the environment it is not acceptable.”
Speaking also at the programme, the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of ICCON, Jwalshik Wilford, expressed optimism that the awareness of the use of chemicals will mitigate accidents at homes, workplaces, and schools, noting that if chemicals are not properly handled can cause hazardous effects.
