Former Nigerian Ambassador to Zambia/Malawi, Folake-Marcus-Bello has lost farm products running into millions of naira, following a mysterious fire which gutted her farmland located on Onipepe axis of Obafemi-Owode local government area of Ogun State.

The fire incident which occurred in the early hours of Tuesday ravaged the 10-hectare farmland known as Folake B Farm, destroying over 500 palm oil trees among other assets.

The source of the fire at the farmland located along Siun-Sagamu-Abeokuta expressway was unknown as at the time of filing this report, and was said to have lasted for about four hours, before it was extinguished.

Preliminary inquiries revealed that some sympathizers around the community where the farm is located blamed the cause of the fire on some hunters who might have set fire to some adjoining bush while trying to kill animals for games, while others believed it may have been a deliberate mischief by some unscrupulous elements.

Manager of the farmland, Mrs Adesola Adebayo, who conducted news reporters round the farmland, said she got a phone call from the villagers by 4.30pm, informing her about the fire, and had to rush to the farm.

On arrival, she reported that the fire burnt intensely, with the harmattan blowing it to consume the larger portion of the farm.

The farm owner, who prior to being Nigerian envoy to Zambia, was a Commissioner for Women Affairs in Ogun State, confirmed the incident to our correspondent. She lamented the huge loss, saying she had invested millions of Naira in the farm and was looking ahead for harvest before the inferno consumed everything.

Penpushing