Makinde proposes State Disaster Endowment Fund for fire victims, others

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday declared that the establishment of a special purse called “State Disaster Endowment Fund” was imperative in providing immediate palliatives for disaster victims.

The Governor gave the hint when he paid an on-the-spot visit to Lebanon Street, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, where fire gutted part of the Dugbe Alawo Market on Wednesday, destroying property worth millions of naira.

According to Governor Makinde, the victims of the recent fire disaster, just like others before them, could have been given immediate palliatives if a State Disaster Endowment Fund was in existence.

“I commiserate with the people in this time of economic impact of Coronavirus and then this. We believe there’s a need for the State to have an endowment fund for disaster. If such an endowment fund existed right now, we could have given immediate palliatives to the people concerned but we’ll try our best to see what we can do within the challenges we’re faced with” he said.

Speaking earlier, the Caretaker, Ibadan Northwest Local Government, Mr Rahman Adepoju, who led the Governor on the inspection visit, disclosed that more than 22 shops stocked with valuable goods worth millions of naira, were consumed by the fire.

The Southwest Zonal Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr Slaku Lugard, said the Agency would send its reports and recommendations in respect of the fire disaster to its Headquarters in Abuja, assuring that some sort of relief would be given to the victims.

The fire disaster, which started around 1:30pm razed a storey building and a bungalow which housed several shops. No fewer than 22 shops were affected, with goods such as electronics, electricity power generators, furniture, books, and building materials, among other items destroyed by the fire.

The cause of the inferno is still unknown, though unconfirmed reports disclosed that the disaster was due to the negligence of a welder working in one of the shops.

The Chief Fire Officer of the Oyo State Fire Service, Mr Moshood Adewuyi, said the Service received a distress call around 1:30pm, adding that a vehicle was sent there immediately to put out the fire but on getting there and realizing the enormity of the fire, the firemen called for a second vehicle.