Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has offered N50 million to victims of Tuesday’s fire incident that gutted parts of the Makurdi modern market.
DAILY POST had reported that over 100 shops in Makurdi Modern Market, Benue State, were engulfed in fire on Tuesday evening.
Ortom, who visited the market on Wednesday, said that the gesture was to help the affected traders “restart something”.
He lamented the magnitude of damage caused by the inferno and sympathised with the traders over their losses.
The Governor also regretted the frequent fire outbreaks at the market as well as the Gboko and Wadata markets, declaring the Tuesday disaster as “one incident too many”.
Ortom said: “Billions of naira have been lost and traders have been reduced to zero level. It is very painful.
“Government will have to take proactive steps to end the ugly trend. We understand that there are issues between the market and the host community.
“We will set up a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the immediate cause of the fire. If there are technical or man-made issues, we will find out and look at how the market can be resuscitated to benefit Benue people,” Ortom told the traders.
The governor also called for a quick resolution of the lingering union issues that were affecting the smooth operation of the market, urging leaders to “talk with each other”.
Chief Sule Abenga, Chairman, Makurdi Traditional Council, who decried the massive damage caused by the inferno, said that the incident had slowed down the economy of the state.
Abenga appealed to the traders to be patient and wait for the state government’s response to the incident.
