ABUJA – Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has promised to support the NEXT Cash and Carry supermarket, ensuring that it recovers stronger than it was before the Boxing Day fire that destroyed it.
Bello speaking during an on-the-spot evaluation of the giant shopping mall complex, said the fire event there was something that rocked the city hard on Boxing Day, since it is a major investment that produces many jobs in the city.
He went on to say that while the inferno was a terrible occurrence, by God’s grace, no lives were lost, and a large portion of the premises where bulk commodities are housed in warehouses was saved.
According to him : ” This particular incident, brought out what is good about us as residents, everybody united and supported them.
“I really sympathise with NEXT, particularly because during the heat of the COVID-19, NEXT were among the foremost companies that provided tremendous support to the FCTA, by providing palliative items, which we distributed to vulnerable members of the community.
“Unfortunately, today they are also vulnerable , so it’s our duty in the city to rally round and protect this important investment that is a generator of many jobs in the city.
“We will give them all the needed support , so that they bounce back stronger than what they were before. We look forward to seeing you back to business in the no distant future.”
He , however, commended the managers and staff of NEXT Cash and Carry for having and activating internal fire fighting mechanism in place, which greatly helped in curtailing the inferno.
While speaking on the update of investigations into the remote cause of the inferno, the Minister said: “The experts are checking to see what the causes are.
Also, commenting on steps taken to prevent reoccurrence of fire outbreaks in the FCT, the Minister opines that : “World over, whenever there is a fire incident, it affords city managers and relevant agencies opportunity to review existing code for built facilities, to make sure whenever fire incidences occur , the damages are minimal.
“With this fire incident, together with relevant agencies, we will look at what really happened , then as time goes on additional measures will be presented.
“The whole is that as buildings are designed and monitored, we will make sure that checks and balances incorporated in such a way that fires are not allowed to go beyond and escape to where they become impossible to contain.”
Source: independent.ng
