By Nsan Ndoma-Neji
Territorial Archbishop of Calabar, Archbishop Josef Bassey, has appealed for city-wide support for business owners, workers and families affected by Saturday’s inferno that wrecked a portion of multi -million nair Calabar shopping Mall, popularly known as SPAR Mall.
The cleric described the fire as a devastating blow to the city’s commercial heart and urged immediate action to help victims recover.
He said that the sight of the mall in flames was “a painful moment in the life of our city,” stressing that the losses extend far beyond merchandise and structures. “Behind every shop are human beings. Behind those businesses are families, salaries, school fees, dreams, debts, years of sacrifice and people whose daily bread depends upon those doors opening every morning,” he stated.
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Addressing those directly hit by the unfortunate incident, the clergyman expressed solidarity and called on the public not to leave them to bear the burden alone.
“There are people tonight who will be asking themselves where they begin from. Some have lost stocks accumulated over years. Some may have committed borrowed capital to their businesses.
Employees will wonder what happens to their jobs. To every one of them, I want to say: Calabar sees you. We feel this with you. You are not standing alone,” he said.
He cautioned that the tragedy must not mark the end of enterprise in the city. “Fire can consume what a man has built, but it cannot consume the capacity by which he built it. It can destroy merchandise; it cannot destroy enterprise.
It can reduce structures to ashes; it cannot reduce destiny to ashes unless the human spirit agrees to remain among the ruins,” the Archbishop noted. He added, “This is therefore not the hour to lecture those who are hurting. It is the hour to stand beside them, to pray with them and, where possible, to help them rise again.”
Archbishop Bassey specifically called on government, corporate organisations, financial institutions, the Church and well-meaning citizens to move beyond sympathy and provide practical interventions. He also urged residents of Cross River State to resist theft, misinformation and insensitive commentary.
“This is when we discover whether we are merely people occupying the same geographical space or truly a people. When one part of the city bleeds, the rest of us must not become spectators,” he said.
Concluding with prayers, the Archbishop invoked faith in recovery. “The God we serve has always demonstrated His ability to bring beauty out of ashes. Buildings can rise again. Businesses can rise again.
“Fortunes can be rebuilt. Lives can recover. Calabar has survived difficult seasons before. We will survive this one” “Calabar will rise from these ashes,” he said.
