Vice-President Kashim Shettima has announced a N5 billion federal government donation to traders affected by the fire that gutted parts of Kano Singer market on Saturday.
Shettima made the announcement during a tour round the Singer Market on Monday to show condolences, according to NAN.
The vice president had previously been instructed by President Bola Tinubu to head a government mission to Kano state in order to express “sympathy and support” to the disaster’s victims.
Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special assistant on information and strategy, said in a statement released Sunday that parts of what he called Nigeria’s “largest food market” had been destroyed by the fire, which started on Saturday night and continued into Sunday morning.
“The president was particularly alarmed that the latest incident occurred less than two weeks after a previous fire destroyed dozens of shops and property at the same market,” the statement reads.
According to Onanuga, the team would “transmit President Tinubu’s sympathies to the traders who lost billions of naira in the market fire that engulfed it over the weekend, marking the second incident in just two weeks.”
“The team will also pledge financial assistance to aid victims and support Kano State in facilitating the quick reopening of the market,” the presidential spokesperson had said.
The goal of the intervention, according to Shettima, who spoke during the visit, was to assist the traders in reviving their enterprises and market commerce.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the sum of N5 billion to support traders affected by the Singer Market fire,” he said.
“The federal government stands with you in this moment of hardship and will continue to provide the necessary support.”
The vice president further described the occurrence a national tragedy, pointing out that the loss was felt not just in Kano state but throughout the entire nation.
The governors of the states of Jigawa, Kebbi, and Imo accompanied Shettima on the tour.
In addition, the vice president prayed for the victims and conveyed hope that a similar catastrophe would not happen again.
The Singer Market Traders’ Association chairman, Junaid Zakari, thanked the federal government for what he called a prompt and kind action.
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