Timber dealers lament exclusion from Tinubu’s Calabar fire relief

Timber dealers in Calabar whose shops and goods were destroyed in a fire incident have lamented their exclusion from the financial intervention recently provided to traders affected by a similar disaster at the city’s Spar Shopping Mall.

The traders said they were disappointed that intervention from the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu was not extended to victims of the fire at the Akim Timber Market.

Earlier this week, the N450 million promised by the President’s wife to traders whose goods were destroyed in the Spar Shopping Mall fire was distributed to 18 beneficiaries at N25 million each.

Reacting to the development, the timber dealers appealed to President Bola Tinubu and the Cross River State Government to consider their plight and provide assistance to enable them to return to business.

Speaking on behalf of the traders on Sparkling FM radio on Friday, one of them, Mr Augustine Effanga, blamed authorities in the state for failing to draw Mrs Tinubu’s attention to the losses suffered by traders at other markets.

“We are really sad that our leaders did not draw the attention of Mrs Tinubu to our plight when she visited the state recently,” Effanga said.

He said the traders believed the intervention might have covered victims of other market fires if the President’s wife had been informed about the extent of their losses.

“We are certain that if the woman was reminded that fire incidents had wreaked havoc not only at Spar Mall but in other markets, destroying our goods and shops worth multiple millions of naira, she would not have limited the presidential intervention to just one set of traders,” he said.

Effanga said the timber dealers had been unable to raise enough resources to return to business several months after the incident.

“We have not been able to recoup resources to return to our businesses since the fire incident. We therefore appeal to the President and our state governor to remember us and give us some respite,” he pleaded.

The traders had estimated their losses at more than N650 million, involving timber and other property destroyed in the fire that affected about 25 shops at the Akim Timber Market on March 27, 2026.