2023-09-26 12:04:00
Since Saturday September 23, 2023, the government has been stepping up measures after the death of 36 people in the fire at a contraband gasoline warehouse in Sèmè Kraké. The tragedy also left 23 injured, according to the latest official report.. Here are the main measures announced so far.
On Saturday September 23, 2023, 36 people lost their lives in the deadly fire at a smuggled gasoline depot in Sèmè Kraké near the border with Nigeria. While the tragedy plunged an entire country into turmoil, the government announced urgent measures to prevent such tragedies in the future.
Assistance psychosociale
A few hours after the tragedy, several members of the government went to the scene of the fire to see the damage. The government delegation was led by the Minister of State for the Economy and Finance Romuald Wadagni. Also present at his side were his health counterpart Benjamin Hounkpatin and Véronique Tognifodé, Minister of Social Affairs and Microfinance. It was the department of the latter which announced the establishment of psychosocial assistance for survivors and families of victims.
“As soon as the patients have been transferred to the CNHU, our social workers organize themselves, alongside health care, to provide psychological assistance to survivors and the victims’ families. Because, in such circumstances, these tragedies cause trauma for those who are conscious and also for families. In addition to this, we are considering setting up a listening cell, either in Sèmè or in Cotonou to collect precise information on the victims and their families. said Véronique Tognifodé.
In the same wake, the twenty survivors of the fire are being cared for free of charge on the instructions of the Head of State, indicated the Minister of Health, Benjamin Hounkpatin.
Investigation and investigation of contraband gasoline depots
In a press release, the public prosecutor at the Porto-Novo court indicated that the prosecution had opened an investigation to determine “the circumstances surrounding this tragic fire”. The prosecution has also set up a crisis unit whose mission is “to inform the parents of the victims, collect information to establish the exact cause of the fire, to determine any possible criminal liability, and to guarantee that justice is done to the victims and their families”
“We are working closely with all parties involved to ensure care and compliance with victim identification protocols,” also clarified the magistrate.
At the same time, in a note sent to the prefects, the Minister of Decentralization ordered an update on gasoline warehouses. It is stated that “this centralized point at the level of each prefecture is expected at the Ministry of Decentralization and Local Governance on Tuesday September 26, 2023 at 5 p.m. later”. In his note, Raphaël Akotègnon explains that the approach is preventive for “avoid the occurrence of a similar situation in other localities”.
Accelerate the restructuring of the sector
The tragedy of Sèmè Kraké will also accelerate reforms in the sector of marketing contraband gasoline. This is what we remember from the remarks of the Minister of State for the Economy and Finance. After noting the urgency to act, Romuald Wadagni revealed certain government measures.
“What happened today shows us that there is an urgent need to change the way this product is marketed,” he remarked. He immediately announced that last year Benin ordered thousands of mini-service stations intended for the local distribution of fuel. “2000 have arrived since June and by 2024, everywhere in the country, we will have these mini-stations to allow these actors who remain in the activity of selling this fuel to do so in safe conditions total”indicated Minister Romuald Wadagni.
With a view to making this desire a reality, Romuald Wadagni met, on Monday September 25, 2023, with stakeholders in the contraband gasoline trade in Benin. The content of the exchanges between the minister and the Kpayo actors has not yet been communicated. However, a second round of talks between the two parties has already been announced next Monday.
On the afternoon of Tuesday September 26, the Council of Ministers endorsed the need to accelerate the ongoing restructuring. “The Head of State instructed the ministers concerned to accelerate ongoing actions, in consultation with the main stakeholders, for the deployment of mini-stations already acquired and whose calibration ended last week”we can read in the report of the government conclave.
Decent jobs
But for Romuald Wadagni, the deployment of mini-service stations constitutes only part of the solution. The reintegration or retraining of actors in other sectors of activity through decent jobs is also envisaged. “We are convinced that by giving these actors a decent job, they will be able to change activity”he indicated.
The minister also assured, as of Saturday evening, that the government is piloting an ambitious program which will make it possible to train these sellers and transform them into economic players in a decent profession. “Since the start of this year, more than 5,000 people have already been retrained […] trained and who today have a decent job”, revealed Romuald Wadagni.
DNA testing and bereavement
The government’s last measure following the deadly fire in Sèmè Kraké was taken at the end of the council of ministers on Tuesday September 26, 2023. To allow the parents of the victims of the tragedy to mourn, the government indicated that DNA tests on the 36 bodies were authorized “so that the remains to be handed over to them are formally identified”.
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