The Governor of Eastern Equatoria State, Louis Lobong Lojore, has appealed to the national government to help provide USD 2 million to support the renovation of the state secretariat that was burnt on Wednesday.
In a press statement he read on Thursday, he also called on the people of Eastern Equatoria and well-wishers to contribute in cash and in-kind to accomplish the task.
“An estimated amount of USD 2 Million is required to carry out a complete renovation and furnishing including the installation of the solar (energy) which we have been using,” he said. “I appeal to the national government to assist the government and people of Eastern Equatoria to renovate this landmark building.”
A section of the state secretariat that houses the governor’s and several other offices, including a conference hall, got burnt on Wednesday morning by a fire that originated from the power control room, according to the governor’s press secretary.
No casualties were reported in the early morning incident however official files dating back to 1994 are said to have been consumed by the fire.
While speaking to the media, Governor Lobong who now operates from home also appealed to development partners and sons and daughters of the state to help in restoring the building.
“I appeal to the citizens of Eastern Equatoria, wherever they are, those at home and in the diaspora and those working in the other parts of the country to contribute in whatever way they can for us to fix this building back to its former shape,” he said.
“I also appeal to our partners, the UN agencies and NGOs operating in Eastern Equatoria State, and the business community and friends to contribute towards this patriotic undertaking of restoring this great office complex in our State capital Torit”, he added.
Lobong said an investigation has been launched to establish the cause of the fire.
“We have launched an investigation into this incident to establish the cause of the fire and we will keep the public informed accordingly,” he said. “We have lost very important historical documents in this incident including the archives of Eastern Equatoria State since its establishment.”