The Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter – Governmental Affairs, Funmi Efuwape has visited the scene of the fire incident that happened late Saturday night and razed down about 15 shops, destroying goods worth millions of naira where one person was injured
Speaking with newsmen, Efuwape said, “The fire outbreak was just because of these shanties erected outside the main market building. Now that they (traders) have seen it for themselves, I am sure when the government comes in and tells them that all these shanties must go, definitely they will agree with us that they have to go.
“About ten shops were affected outside and five inside. The five would not have been affected if the ones outside were not there. The fire started from the illegal structures outside and erupted to the main building.”
Efuwape disclosed that the main market building will undergo an integrity test to ascertain its safety, while the government will roll out measures to renovate the market.
A sister ministry which is directly in charge of the Oba Lipede Ultra Modern Market, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the commissioner in charge, Hon Adebola Sofela has also visited the scene with assurances that those affected will be taken care of as Governments will also swing into action to ensure that those damaged areas are rebuilt.
”The type of response to the inferno which happened late Saturday night signifies the state’s responsiveness to issues of hazard, very responsive to issues of accident where lives and properties are threatened”.
”Just like it happened when the thunder storm occurred and affected the market, we acted swiftly to make sure that repairs were made so that traders would go back to do their businesses”.
”I have looked at the extent of the damage, apart from the built-up areas that were built up in addition to the physical structure of the market itself, the extent of damage with respect and sense of responsibility is not as great in terms of physical impact.”
”A shop downstairs was affected, and i think about four stores upstairs were affected with some damage to about a few of the roofing sheets, so, i want to presume that if the remediation is limited to where the fire impact is, then is shouldn’t take us to long to come back to site and see what we would be able to do in the first instance in terms of remediation”.
The Director of the State Emergency Management Agency (OGSEMA), Wale Sonde, Director of State Fire Service, Fatai Adefala, the Chairman of Abeokuta South Local Government, Omolaja Majekodunmi, were among those that visited the market on Sunday morning to assess the situation.
