The Ondo State Government on Tuesday disbursed about N26 million to 76 traders affected during the Akure Market fire incident which occurred on June 22.

Mr Agboola Ajayi, Deputy Governor of the state, at the event in Akure said that the gesture was part of government’s responsibility to care for the people.

Ajayi announced that the amount given to the traders were between N200, 000 and N500, 000 thousand naira only, depending on the level of destruction they suffered.

The deputy governor, who is also the chairman of State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), advised the traders to always switch off electrical appliances after close of sales.

“We may not be able to repay all that is lost, but it will just bring succour, like a palliative.

“The ultimate responsibility of the government is to protect the lives and properties of the people and to be responsive to their yearnings one of which is to come to their aid in cases of emergency or disaster,” he said.

Earlier, the Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, extolled the state government for the gesture in spite of the economic challeges in the state.

The monarch added that whatever they got from the government was free and not loaned to them.

Speaking on behalf of the traders, Mr Bisi Bakare, thanked the state government for the gesture.

He also commended the authority for its adherence to due process in the compilation of the beneficiaries’ list and the disbursement of the fund.