By Fatima Muraina
The Ondo State Government has assured victims of the recent fire outbreak at the Ore International Market in Odigbo Local Government Area of its commitment to finding ways to support them and restore the affected section of the market.
The Commissioner for Commerce, Industry and Cooperative Services, Pastor Adebola Ademuwagun, gave the assurance when he led a team from the ministry on an inspection visit to the market on Monday to assess the extent of the damage caused by the fire.
In a press release issued by the Ministry’s Press Officer, Mrs. Adewumi Aderonke, the fire, which reportedly started at about 9:00 p.m. and lasted until around 7:00 a.m., destroyed 14 lock-up shops containing goods and other valuables estimated at several millions of naira.
Ademuwagun, who commiserated with the affected traders on behalf of the state government, said the ministry would convey their plight and requests for assistance to Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, whom he described as a listening leader.
The commissioner noted that the Ore International Market was owned by the state government, stressing that the government would not abandon its property or allow the affected portion of the market to remain in a deplorable condition.
He assured the victims that their requests would be given due consideration, noting that the appropriate procedures would be followed by the government in addressing the situation.
Ademuwagun also urged traders to adopt proactive safety measures to prevent a recurrence of such an incident, particularly by paying attention to fire prevention and other safety precautions within the market.
Earlier, the Iyaloja of the Ore International Market, Chief Mrs Eniola Ogunlana, expressed sadness over the incident, saying the traders had suffered huge losses.
She said the cause of the fire had yet to be established, adding that the fire service had to refill its tank three times during the operation to put out the inferno.
One of the affected traders, Mrs Akinnusi Grace said the fire had destroyed the means of livelihood of the victims, many of whom had obtained bank loans to stock their shops.
She listed some of the goods destroyed to include television sets, washing machines, refrigerators, deep freezers, gas cookers, treadmills, kitchen utensils, fabrics, blenders, stationery, provisions, bags of rice and kegs of vegetable oil.
The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mrs Toyin Oni, also sympathised with the victims and urged them not to allow the incident to cause psychological distress that could affect their health.
Members of the inspection team included the Deputy Director, Commerce (Business Premises), Mrs Helen Fadiro, and the Deputy Director, Market and Haulage, Mr Olalekan Adebayo.