JL PROPERTIES Limited, a wholly owned Ghanaian Real Estate Company has presented assorted items worth GHc20,000 to the 250 victims whose homes and shops were razed down by fire at Abofu, in the Okaikoi North Constituency of the Greater Accra Region.
The items, which include mattresses, boxes of soap, sachets of water, bags of rice, and cooking oils among others are part of the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility of supporting the community in which they operate.
Presenting the items to the victims, Mrs Elizabeth Orleans-Lindsay, a member of the board on behalf of JL Properties said the predicament of the victims is a concern to them, hence the support to the victims.
Mr Fuseini Issah, the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Okaikoi North Constituency who was present at the presentation exercise, commended JL Properties for their support and call on other institutions to emulate their example.
He explained that, “There is a gap between expectation and what we are really able to offer and we are working towards breaching that gap,” adding that, “I won’t stand here and promise anybody that, I a m going to give them rented accommodation and put back the structures, no.
“This is a community that actually got into this situation, so we are looking at breaching the gap. We are still engaging we are still finding some possibilities; we are looking at how to work together as in privilege positions like myself and the victims of the incidents.
He explained further that, “till date, we have been able to find a temporal accommodation at classrooms and in church houses and you will agree with me that such is not a long term solution and as to whether we have the resources to give back to 250 people permanent accommodation is also another thing.”
Mrs Gladys Ayorkor, the Queen Mother of Abofu who together with the MP received the items on behalf of the victims, also salute JL Propertues for their gesture and seized the opportunity to ask other institutions to play their respective role in supporting the victims.
Rose Jakpasu, one of the victims expressed her appreciation to JL Properties for the gesture and called on other institutions to support them find a permanent accommodation.
Background
On Thursday, May 3, Scores of shops and wooden houses at Abofu in Accra were razed by a late afternoon fire and according to eyewitness accounts; the fire which burnt down the structures was caused by a naked flame from a gas cooker that was in one of the wooden structures.
Although the Ghana National Fire Service arrived at the scene on time, properties estimated to cost about GHS 1 million were consumed by the raging fire.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM