Gov. Lobong appeals to well wishers to raise fund for burnt office renovation

The Governor of Eastern Equatoria State Louis Lobong Lojore has called on well wishers and citizens of the state to contribute funds for the renovation of parts of the state secretariat buildings razed down by fire on Wednesday.

The governor’s office, which is located in the heart of Torit town caught fire under obscure circumstances, and reportedly destroyed some vital materials including documents and furniture.

The vital documents gutted by the fire include archives of the state since its establishment.

The authorities of the State says the building requires complete renovation after the roofing and glass windows were both destroyed during the fire outbreak.

Governor Louis Lobong Lojore of East Equatoria State, whose office and several other government buildings caught fire on Wednesday, has estimated the cost of renovating the burnt office buildings at 2 million US dollars.

In a press statement this morning, Lobong appeals to well wishers and the citizens of Eastern Equatoria to help contribute money for the renovation of the government secretariat.

“I appeal to the citizen of Eastern Equatoria wherever they are. Those at home, those in diaspora, those working in other parts of the Country to contribute in whatever way they can for us to fix this building back to its former shape,” said the governor.

The secretariat buildings also double as offices several top state officials including the deputy governor and a number of ministers, some of whom are now left without offices.

“As we speak now, the governor, deputy governor, advisors and four ministers who have been sharing this building have no office to operate from,” Governor Lobong said.

He calls on the public including the national government, development agencies and humanitarian organizations to help the state in restoration of the secretariat complex.

“I also appeal to our development partners, the UN agencies and the NGOs operating in Eastern Equatoria State, the Business Community and friends of Eastern Equatoria to contribute towards this patriotic undertaking of restoring this great office complex in our state capital,” he added.

Also shortly after the incident, Governor Lobong’s right-hand man, Aliandro Lotok described the destruction of the documents as a great loss to the state’s heritage and history.

According to Lotok, Governor Lobong’s office including documents containing vital information from 1994 to 2019 were gutted by the fire.

The incident occurred as the secretariat staff were cleaning up the offices, but no casualties have been reported.

The fire was reportedly put off by the Civil Defense Services, an UNMISS team, and some residents of Torit.

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, but Lotok disclosed an investigation has commenced to establish the trigger of the incident.