Goods worth billions of naira were on Tuesday night consumed by a late evening fire that gutted a shopping mall in Lagos Street, Benin City, Edo State
The Shopping Mall, which houses over forty shops where cosmetics
and kitchen utensils are sold, according to an eye witness caught fire at about 7.30pm in the evening owning to electricity surge from Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC)
The eye witness,who gave his name as Joseph Eboigbe,a dealer in cosmetics in Lagos Street said , there was no power supply all through Tuesday until at about 7.00pm when power supply was restored with a very high power surge and by then most of the shop owners were gone home.
“What happened was that there was no light all through Tuesday, until at about 7.00pm when light came,but then many people had gone home, at about 7.30pm, we started seeing smoke from one of the shops, before anything serious could happen, there was this burst of flame and that was how everywhere caught fire,we have to call the fire service,who came,but before then most of the shops were already consumed.They saved the day,because they came with two vehicles and if it were not for their efforts the fire would have extended to other shops and houses there.”
A victim of the fire incident,Pual Umoh,70, who had been in one of shops that was gutted by fire since 1981 and deals in kitchen utensils, said he lost over #10 million in the incident.
According to him, “I was around till 6.30pm before going home,I didn’t see any sign of fire,but when I got home,took my birth and was about eating , I received a phone call that N0 16 Lagos Street,where I have a shop is on fire. Before,I could get to the place ,the whole place was already gutted by fire. I was able to bring out somethings,but those things were also damaged by the fire brigade people who stepped on them and damaged it.
“The Fire People used water and even the water fetched from the gutter was poured on my goods.All the glasses wereall broken.” he said
He pleaded that the government should come to their aids as it is becoming very difficult to live as a result of high cost of living.
“I want the government to assist us,we know that during the time of Adams Oshiomhole, those whose shops were gutted by fire at Agbado Market were given some assistance by government,but for Obaseki, we have seen more than 5 markets gutted by fire in the last two years,but they did not give them anything. I have lost over #10million to this fire incident .” he lamented.
Reacting to regular fire Incidents at major markets in Edo State during Christmas period,the All Progressives Congress(APC)urged market women, artisans, to punish the Obaseki led PDP government with their votes
The criticism was made by Mr. John Mayaki, the Chairman of the Edo Media and Publicity Committee of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, in a statement in which he accused the Obaseki-administration of “unconscionable negligence, especially on the issue of incessant fire incidents reducing people’s livelihoods and means of economic survival to ashes.”
He said, “Every December, innocent women and traders in Edo State are made to suffer the terrible tragedy of seeing their life investments, and possibly sole means of economic survival, destroyed by fire outbreaks enabled by the negligence and irresponsibility of the state government.”
“What is most troubling is that these incidents have followed the same pattern within the life of the hapless Obaseki-administration, with no serious or proactive response from the government despite the heavy toll on the well-being of ordinary citizens, including market women who form the lifeblood of Edo State’s commerce.”
Mayaki questioned why the Obaseki-administration is ever so eager to exact high taxes on the citizens without providing the requisite public services expected of any responsible government to the people.
“It appears this administration, in keeping with the PDP’s approach of milking people and state without any tangible investment in public services and infrastructure, is only interested in raising and withdrawing taxes, without doing anything to help the people.” he said.
