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. Source: GNA