First it was the flood
which ravaged Lokoja and parts of Kogi
State
In the reports below from
Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River , Delta, Edo, Kogi, Kwara and Niger States
In a part of Cross River
State
From Minna , Niger
In Anambra, it was so bad
that by the time Governor Obi got back to where his convoy of cars was parked
after inspecting some flooded communities, the water level had risen and the
cars had to be moved farther; the governor needed to do the remainder of the
trip on foot, inside the flood which got to waist level.
In Patigi, some of their
leaders said they last saw this type of flooding over 70 years ago.
In Delta State
In Benue State
For the downstream parts
of the country, the water levels will still rise as the dams in Cameroun Niger River
is fed. It might take few more weeks before the devastation engages another
gear, especially for those in the Delta region.
What has been the
emergency response? Well, the best on offer is not good enough. Read the
following horrific stories and make up your mind.
By Vincent Ujumadu
With the plethora of
canoes now plying the areas, you could easily mistake this terrain for a pure
riverine area. But they are not. These were once lands, with roads snaking
through them. Today what you have is a ‘sea’.
Four local government
areas in Anambra State
Governor Peter Obi had to
suspend the Independence Day celebration to meander through the flooded
Onitsha-Osomala road in Ogbaru and Nmiata road in Anambra West to supervise the
evacuation of people trapped in their communities by the menacing flood.
The damage done by flood
in the affected areas has been enormous. For instance, the entire Nzam, Aguleri
Otu (where President Goodluck Jonathan commissioned the Orient Peterleum
facility), Nmiata, Odekpe, Osomala, Osuche, Atani, Amii, Umuzu, among other
communities in the state are now under water and properties worth billions of
naira in the four local government areas destroyed.
Also, the Ogbaru Anglican
Cathedral and the Catholic Church in Atani, the Divisional Police Station and
the High Court and Magistrate Courts in the area, as well as secondary and
primary schools have been totally submerged and canoes are plying there as if
nothing existed in the area before the flood.
At the Ogbaru local
government headquarters in Atani, the menacing flood pulled down the fence and
flooded most of the offices, necessitating the evacuation of all government
property. The affected churches had also removed all their property and the
Bishop; Reverend Samuel Ezeofor had relocated his household to safe area.
Road sides, which served
as refugee camps have also become flooded and it was only this development that
made the refugees to agree to move into designated camps provided by
government. After persuading the people to leave their properties and secure
their lives first, Obi thereafter used canoe to reach other communities trapped
across the River Niger. By the time he returned to continue his inspection, it
was difficult coming out from Osamalla as flood had already covered the entire
road though which he would leave. The governor and his team had to wade through
the flood, which reached their waists to get to where the convoy of vehicles
was parked.
At each of the communities
– Akili-Ogidi, Akili-Ozizor, Amiyi, Atani, Mputu, Obeagwe, Ochuche, Odekpe,
Ogbakuba, Ogwu-Aniocha, Agwuikpele, Ohita, Okpoko, Ossomala, Umunankwo, Umuodu,
Umuzu – the governor explained to them why they should be evacuated and
promised them that government would continue to assist them till the flood is
over and rehabilitate them thereafter. Many camps have been established and
government has provided the basic necessities to ensure that epidemic did not
break out. Some places were designated as cooking points from where food is
distributed to the camps located at Aguleri, Onitsha
Even part of the
commercial city of Onitsha
THE senator representing
Anambra South in the upper legislative chambers, Dr. Andy Uba, who also visited
the affected areas, said the senate would allocate more funds in next year’s
budget for disaster management in various parts of the country in view the
devastation caused by flood.
He said that while they
were in Abuja sympathizing with other states
affected by the disaster, he never knew that the situation in his own Anambra State
By Samuel Oyadongha
This year’s flood in
Bayelsa has been described as unprecedented in the last 50 years. Life has been
literarily brought to a standstill in the riverside communities eighty per cent
of which have been submerged by flood and the people racing against time to see
what they could salvage.
For a state with the
longest coastline in the country, measuring approximately 800 miles and lying
below sea level, the pain of the people is understandable.
It is on record that aside
the people being assailed annually by devastating flood leading to destruction
of their means of livelihood (fishing and farmland) their communities on the
Atlantic fringe are also being swallowed up gradually by the surging ocean.
While the state
semi-diurnal tidal regime ensures two tidal floods and two low ebb tides within
the course of each day, wave actions along the coastline results in both
depletion and loss of sediments in the beaches.
Hence, flooding, which
have been perennial, forces residents in the flood prune areas to flee their
homes to distant upland areas from the riverbanks, creeks and waterways.
Virtually every part of
the state is under water except Nembe and Brass council areas.
Flood submerged buildings at Umueze Anam, Anambra west LG
Unlike in other parts of
the country, this phenomenon is a yearly ritual for the people whose means of
livelihood is not only destroyed but are also subjected to health hazards
associated with such disaster.
Ironically, it is this
same water which the people defecate into that also serves as their drinking
water with the result that water borne diseases are rampant during the flood
season in the predominantly riverine state.
Sadly, this year’s
occurrence has turned out to be the worst for the natives as hitherto upland
areas used as shelter by those fleeing from surging flood have all been
submerged, leaving in its trail pain and sorrow.
“We have been overwhelmed
by this year’s flood, there is apprehension everywhere in the land as virtually
all the communities considered to be safe haven and often used as transit camps
pending the return of normalcy in the past are gradually being taken over by
the scourge,” lamented Ebiowei Ayaowe. In fact, some of the victims lamented
“this is Armageddon”
Sunday Vanguard’s
investigations revealed that the hardest hit segments of the population are not
the just the fishermen and the conventional formal occupations but the farmers,
palm wine tapers and distillers. Also, schools have temporarily shut down in
the flood devastated communities where fishing activities have been grounded
due to the enormous volume of water.
What could have been the
harvest of farm produce in the impacted communities such as cassava, sugar
cane, yams, plantain, rice and others have been lost to the flood.
A troubled Bayelsan, Elder
John Obu, whose Biseni hometown is also under water, blamed the sad scenario in
the lower river Niger
One of the foremost
environmentalists in the Niger Delta and an indigene of the state, Alagoa
Morris, while xraying the situation in the riverside communities said, “it is a
battle for survival in these communities as the folks are left alone to combat
the scourge.
“It is sad to observe that
the federal government has not shown the political will to address the problems
of the area once and for all. The federal government interventionist agency,
the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) established to address the
developmental aspiration of the people, is being starved of funds thereby
hampering its objective.”
BENUE STATE: We woke up
inside water, victims lament
By Peter Duru
Never in the history of Benue State
The devastation, to say
the least, took the people unawares and this accounted for the magnitude of
losses incurred by victims – most woke up one morning to discover that they
were sitting in the middle of an angry River Benue that overflowed its banks.
From Katsina-Ala to
Makurdi down to Otukpo and Agatu, it was all tales of woes by the victims of
the devastation; and as at the last count, close to 10,000 houses, business
places, huts and farmlands have been swept away or submerged by the raging
flood.
Worst hit by the
devastation were residences and houses along the banks of River Benue and most
structures within ten kilometers radius of the River.
Some of the communities
and towns badly hit by the rising flood waters included Otukpo, Agatu and Apa
local government areas of the state while in Makurdi areas like Kucha Otebe,
Gyado Villa, brick factories in Wadata and New Garage, the abattoir along the
new Makurdi bridge, North bank and the highbrow Judges quarters where Senate
Minority Leader, Senator George Akume and Minister of State, Trade and
Investment, Dr. Samuel Ortom, have their residential houses, were ravaged.
Also threatened by the
rising water levels were the main campus of the Benue State University and the
newly constructed Benue University Teaching Hospital, the Regional Headquarters
of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG and the cooperate headquarters of
state owned transportation company, Benue Links Nigeria, all in Makurdi.
The devastation also
sacked majority of the students of the state owned Benue State
University
One of the victims of the
flood and final year student of Benue
State University
He said, “We actually
noticed a sudden rise in water levels along the banks of River Benue but we
felt it was normal given the torrential rains two days before; but to our
surprise we woke up one morning to discover that our houses have been
completely submerged by water flowing from the river”.
Recounting his loss,
father of four, Mr. Romeo Dajoh, said he lost several of his household items
but thanked God that he was able to escape with his family alive.
But as the victims
continue to count their losses, the State government also moved to provide them
some form of reprieve and succor; three displaced persons’ camps were
immediately established to house the thousands of people who lost their homes
to the deluge.
And as the number of the
displaced families continued to swell, the state government increased the
number of camps to four all of which were situated within the premises of
schools located in High level, Wurukum and Wadata areas of Makurdi town.
Though the level of the
devastation was beyond the scope of the state government, this bold initiative
has also been accompanied with the provision of food and medications for the
displaced with several donor agencies coming to the aid of the victims.
Members and officials of
the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, and that of the Nigerian Red
Cross Society have also been handy and helpful in ensuring that the displaced
persons have access to good medicare and good food.
Benue State First Lady,
Arc Mrs. Yemisi Suswam, was also on hand to extend assistance and aid to
children, women and families in order to ameliorate their suffering.
Governor Peter Obi , with Anglican Bishop of Mbamili, Most Rev. Henry Okeke transversing what was once a sprawling community of Umueze Anam in a boat.
Mrs. Suswam, who worked in
tandem with officials of the State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, frequents
the camps to ensure that they were managed efficiently while also moving relief
materials, clothing, food, school scandals, books and other learning aid to the
displaced persons in the four camps.
According to Mrs. Suswam
during one of her visits to the camps, “we will continue to stand by you in
this trying moments. Rest assured that I share your pains and suffering as a
result of this devastation.
Mrs. Suswam, who also
organized a 52nd Independence Day Anniversary Celebration for children of the
displaced persons in Makurdi, used the occasion to receive two newly born
babies at the Wurukum camp where she promised to personally cater for the needs
of the new babies and their mothers.
CROSS RIVER STATE
By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
ABOUT 79, 000 people have
been displaced by natural disasters in the past nine months in Cross River
State Cameroon
The flood affected 178
communities, killed 11 persons and destroyed 15 churches, 13 schools and 18
markets. The worst hit was Biase Local Government Area where 18 communities
were sacked, 11 persons drowned, eight churches, six schools and nine markets
destroyed.
The flood also displaced
26 communities from Ikom Local government Area and destroyed one school and two
markets. In Odukpani Local government Area, 29 communities were displaced,
while 34 communities were sacked by the flood in Ogoja Local Government Area
with three churches, four schools and two markets destroyed.
In Obubra, 18 communities
were rendered homeless, four churches, two schools and five markets destroyed,
while the flood turned indigenes of 22 communities’ into refugees in their
fatherland. Abi also was not left out as 13 communities were also displaced.
At Umon
Island in Biase, a seven year old girl
was killed, three declared missing while two were taken to hospital where they
were receiving treatments following an overflow of the Cross River
Among those receiving
treatment at the community Health Centre, Umon who narrowly escaped death when
their houses collapsed on them (but were lucky that the youths on vigilante
exercise were around) are a 53 year old woman and a 78 year old man.
The corpses of the missing
children feared drowned in their houses and apparently washed into the river
were yet to be found despite the efforts made by the village divers searching
for them so that they could be given befitting burial.
The family of the dead
girl who had already been buried was yet to fully absorb the shock as they were
seen mourning at the grave side.
In Umon Island alone over
40 houses with about 1,500 people while about 70% of the entire village with a
population of 6,000 has been flooded, and movement between houses done either
by wading through water which is at waist level or canoes.
A prominent Chief of the
community Elder Okon Nya Aniyom, 78, while reacting to the disaster recalled
that such catastrophe had occurred twice in his lifetime; 1971 and 1991 but
that the magnitude could never be compared with what was happening.
In Calabar Municipality
The flood sacked 150
people from their homes. One of the victims, a widow who recently lost her
husband to assassins in Akwa
Ibom State
Delivering a paper at a
workshop jointly organized by the State ministry of Information and the United
Nation’s Children Fund, UNICEF, with the theme ‘Flooding and Climate Change
Adaptation in Cross River State: Safety measures for School Children.
By Simon Ebegbulem
Not less than 500,000
persons have become refugees in Edo
State
Governor Peter Obi , with
Anglican Bishop of Mbamili, Most Rev. Henry Okeke transversing what was once a
sprawling community of Umueze Anam in a boat.
The palace of the Daudu of
Usumegbe, Chief John Musa, and that of the village head of Udaba, Chief David
Inetape are among the buildings that have been submerged in the flood. The
houses of the proprietor of DAAR Communications, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi and
that of the former chairman of Etsako West, Stanley Odidi were among those that
submerged.
In Agenebode, the
headquarters of Etsako East Local Government Area and its surrounding villages
have also been taken over by the flood, while Ilushi, Urho, Urhowa and Inyelen
in Esan South East Local Government Area have completely been destroyed by the
flood with the entire people moved to Ubiaja the council headquarters. Governor
Adams Oshiomhole inspected the affected areas penultimate week with a
helicopter.
At some point the governor
and his entourage had to paddle canoes in order to get access to some of the
interior communities. All the affected communities are in Etsako Central,
Etsako West and Esan South East Local Government Councils of the state.
Oshiomhole who expressed
shock over the incident, described it as worse than tsunami and immediately
released the sum of N100million for the purchase of relief materials for the
victims. He also assured that government will look for a long-term solution to
avoid a re-occurrence in the future just as he said government will liaise with
the Federal Government to get relief for the displaced persons.
“What has happened is an
act of God and no one can challenge the will of God. In other parts of the
country, we have heard of the loss of lives, but so far we have not recorded
any death. Let us pray that the river goes back to its boundary. We are sending
relief materials which must be shared to everybody irrespective of which
political party they belong to, and doctors will be sent to treat those who are
sick. We are also sending the Comrade Buses to evacuate those still in the
flooded communities to the camps. More communities are affected and the water level
is rising. We all appear completely helpless and the Federal Government ought
to do more than they have done. The situation calls for a far more drastic
response” he added.
Oshiomhole noted that
there are long-term implications as farm lands have been destroyed, domestic
animals have been killed.
“This phenomenon got even
more intense last year and so far, this year, it has become very alarming as
all rivers in the country have overflowed their banks and a large number of
communities and local governments from Lokoja in Kogi through Etsako West in
Edo State down to Biase in Cross River State are all presently under water and
as the rainy season peaks, we must be vigilant for more flood incidents,
because the weather has become unpredictable and extreme conditions like
excessive rainfall, severe windstorm, heat wave and drought have become more
frequent with adverse effects on the economy, environment, agricultural
production and food security lives and livelihoods” he stated.
However, the situation
became more tragic when four persons were said to have died in the camps. A
middle-aged man identified as Alhaji Bila, reportedly slumped and died at the Ekperi Grammar
School
Public-spirited
individuals have continued to send relief materials to the displaced persons to
ameliorate their plight. Some of those who have been assisting so far includes
the former chairman of Etsako West Local Government Council, Stanley Odidi, the
national leadership of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), TY Danjuma
Foundation, a chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) John Akhigbe
and host of others.
Bila slumped and died
during an on-the-spot assessment of flood ravaged communities and presentation
of relief materials and medical support services by the NMA led by its
President, Dr Osahon Enabulele. Meanwhile the Committee set up by the Edo State
Government to distribute relief materials to the affected persons has
intensified its activities. While distributing the materials, last Monday,
Chairman of the Relief Committee working in conjunction with the State
Emergency Relief Agency, Hajia Maimuna Momodu, said the relief materials were
palliative measures to soothe the pains of the victims and take care of their
immediate needs.
By Wole- Mosadomi
In what is emerging as a
comic twist to the flooding disaster in Niger State
For the people of Niger
State in the past years, flooding had been limited to communities along Rivers
Niger and Kaduna especially affecting those living downstream of Jebba, Kanji
and Shiroro which are the three multibillion naira hydro electricity generating
stations in the state.
However, the flooding of
this year extended to other communities in most parts of the state including
Chanchaga, Bosso, Munya, Shiroro, Borgu, Wushishi, Mokwa, Bida Edati and Lapai.
Besides the human lives lost, properties worth millions of naira were lost
including animals and farm produce.
As at last week, 49 lives
had been lost to the flood, 117 communities displaced with no fewer than
663,000 people affected. The heavy rainfall was complemented by excess water
released from the three hydro-electricity Dams of Shiroro, Jebba and Kainji in
the past few weeks.
In Minna the state
capital, despite the multimillion naira drainage system across the city,
flooding also ravaged some of the communities resulting in the death of four
people.
More devastating was a
family who lost two children – Bashir, 12years, and Mustapha, 10years – had
their lives terminated when they slipped into a flowing drainage in front of
the Bahago Plaza
The Legal Adviser to the leading opposition party in the state, Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, Barrister Joseph Kolo, also died mysteriously during a downpour in Minna. Though he was not washed away by flood, his death came while in his car waiting in front of the gate to his friend’s house for the heavy rains to subside when a heavy tree gave way to the rainstorm and fell on his car, smashing it – he died instantly.
Also in Bosso Local
Government Area which is a neighbouring local government to Chanchaga, members
of Gwaibaitas family of Gungel Village was thrown into mourning as two members
of the family were washed away by flood after a heavy downpour. The corpses of
the deceased were later recovered kilometers away from their area the following
day.
Similarly, Zungeru, in
Wushishi Local Government Area of the state also had its own bitter experience
of this years flooding. Besides farmlands washed away, two Fulani herdsmen were
also washed away with their cows. Worst hit are Mokwa and Lapai Local
Government Areas of the state where lives and farm produce were lost.
Mostly affected are Aza,
Muregi, Zdagu, Egagi, Zdagu, Ketso Kpashafu and Lenfakus, all in Mokwa Local
Government Area of the state.
In Lapai, communities
displaced are Eshiu, Kpataku, Dere, Egba, Reba, Achiba, Muye-Gbako, Tsakanabi,
Ebwa and they want to be relocated at Kolu in Egba Junction in Bina area.
Others are Egya and Sokun who want to be relocated in Nambata-Ebege area,
Pelle, Rigido, Edda, Gbami who want to be resettled at Puzhi area while Yawa,
Yambabu, Koki, Elegi and Mumbu communities want to be relocated at Madalla
area.
Workers at a car washing
centre in Minna also watched helplessly when four cars brought for washing were
submerged by the torrential rainfall just as valuable properties left in the
vehicles were either damaged or washed away in the presence of the vehicle
owners.
In an interview with our
correspondent, Director General , Niger
Chairman, Lapai Local
Government Area, Alhaji Isah Saidu, has led officials of the council to the
affected areas to commiserate with the affected people and gave them cash and
other relief materials.
Managing Director, Upper
Niger River Basin Development Authority, Professor Paul Marley, has raised an
alarm over the flooding witnessed across the country in the past few weeks
saying, it is a threat to the food security programme of the federal
government. According to him, “except for rice that is highly tolerant to
water, other cereals like maize, Millet e.t.c. cannot. Horticulture crops and
other food crops in flood affected areas are being lost and this will cause the
country big problem in food production next year because it may take long for
the water to subside and this may lead to high prices in food next year.”
Interestingly, while many
of those in various temporary camps are clamouring for their immediate return
home or be resettled to a permanent place to start a new life, some of them
feel contented and happy with where they are, due to the free medication and
most importantly free food they are given.
Malam Shaba
By Demola Akinyemi
The magnitude of flood
disaster penultimate week in Patigi, headquarters of Patigi Local Government in
the northern part of Kwara
State
Patigi, a rural and
agrarian/fishing community is about three hours journey from Ilorin ,
the capital of the state; only a river separates it from the neighbouring Niger State
Tragedy struck penultimate
week when waters from Rivers Niger and Kaduna
While the disaster lasted,
residents of more than 70 communities in the area were displaced just as 16
communities were completely submerged by the ravaging floods from both rivers.
Sunday Vanguard’s visit to
the area revealed that about one million hectares of farmland of rice and large
number of hectares of maize worth more than N300 million were destroyed.
Among the affected
communities are Kpata-Gbaradogi, Gunji-Saaci, Gbafun, Gakpan, Vuma, Esungi,
Mawogi, among others.
During the visit to the
areas, Sunday Vanguard gathered that the last time a disaster of such magnitude
occurred was some 76 years ago.
Some of the victims of the
flood were resettled at an outskirt of Patigi community on a piece of land given
to them by the Etsu of Patigi; but, expectedly, their mood couldn’t have been
any worse.
Speaking with Sunday
Vanguard, the community leaders of Gunji-Saaci and Gbafun communities who are
now at the resettlement camp, located close to another river with their family
members, said it is the seventh time they are relocating from one location to
another due to flood problem.
The community heads said
that flood usually destroyed their cash crops, food items and property anytime
there it occurred; this situation, they said, had made it difficult for them to
garner enough financial muscle to erect comfortable and permanent structures to
live in.
One of the victims,
Mohammed Ibrahim, who is now displaced with members of his family, told Sunday
Vanguard that the flood has destroyed his abode, his belongings, farms,
animals, boats and nets.
Mohammed said all he had
with him are his soaked mattress, earthen pots and cooking pots.
Also affected is the
ancestral home of the commissioner for Solid Minerals and Industries, Alhaji
Aliyu Umar.
According to him, “There
is nothing we can do but to pray to Allah to put a stop to all the misfortune.
It has happened but we never expected it so soon. We experienced this kind of
flood, according to one of my grandfathers who is still alive, 76 years ago –
way back around 1934/1935. It used to come, but not as much as it has come this
year.
“Because of the construction
of dam upstream, those of us at the downstream are at the mercy of the flood.
Before the dam, we at the downstream know when the flood will come and how to
manage the resources, the level it will reach and how to anticipate it. But
after the construction of the dams, the story changed. People living around the
riverine area who used to be fishermen were forced to become farmers; but
whenever the floods come, it washes away their farmlands. This is devastating.
River Kaduna has a confluence with River Niger
The Head of Service (HOS),
Alhaji Dabarako Mohammed and Special Adviser to governor on Emergency and
Relief Services, Alhaji Musa Abdulahi, who led the government delegation to the
areas, said no life was lost, adding that though residential buildings, worship
centres and schools were pulled down by the flood.
Chairman of the local
government, Alhaji Taoheed Lata, said the 48-hour flood alert notice, given by
NEMA to residents of river banks, was inadequate for the residents to relocate.
According to him, “They
should have given us up to one month or two months’ notice. There are crops you
can plant for three months and they will germinate. But with rain already
going, it will be late to plant any crop again this year and the people will be
the ones to suffer for this”.
By Emma Amaize
Over the decades, the
people of Oko-Anala, Oko-Ogbele and Oko- Amakom in Oshimili South Local
Government Area of Delta State have been living near the bank of the River
Niger, between Anambra and Delta
States
The state governor, Dr.
Emmanuel Uduaghan, was flabbergasted when he inspected the damage wreaked by
flood in the communities and practically swore that he was going to relocate
them from the flood-prone environment. At the back of Government House on Asaba-Anwai Road
In a community in
Ndokwa-East local government area of the state, a traditional ruler, who was
being evacuated from his undersea community drowned when the boat capsized,
while old men, women and children climbed trees like monkeys in some affected
communities to escape the rage of the flood that had swallowed their homes.
Three persons have been
reported dead and over 300, 000 persons rendered homeless in 220 communities in
the state in the latest sea surge. A riverine dweller, Mr. John Okotie, told
Sunday Vanguard, “The flood reminded me of days of Noah in the Bible when God
sent flood to wipe out the entire human race because of sin”.
He is not alone.
Niger-Delta activist, Comrade Omolubi Newuwumi, who hails from Ogheye community
in Warri North local government area, told Sunday Vanguard, “We are living in
water; the rage of the River Niger is not strange to us. It overflows every
time and swallows our people and their homes, we have been crying over the
years that government should come to our assistance, nobody listened to us,
Newuwumi asserted.
Like Omolubi, ex-chairman
of Gbekebor, a predominantly Ijaw fishing settlement in Burutu local government
area, which is also inundated by flood, Comrade Alapala Ebitonmo, told Sunday
Vanguard, “Ocean surge has constituted a threat to our lives and property for many
decades, but we never dreamed of what happened this year”.
His words, “The havoc
wreaked by the water on the community is unusual and pathetic. It has accounted
for a large proportion of losses; properties worth millions of naira, people
are prone and infected with deadly diseases, all schools in my town have been
closed down, residential houses and commercial shops devastated”, he added.
President of Gbekebor
Peace Movement and secretary of Gbekebor Urban Community, Messrs. Oyinkro
Egberibo and Tonfa Cyprian respectively, passionately to the Federal Ministry
of Environment, National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, Federal Ministry of
Niger Delta Affairs, Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Governor
Uduaghan, Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC and
non-governmental organizations, NGOs, to come to the aid of the community.
Briefing Governor Emmanuel
Uduaghan on the rescue operations and distribution of relief materials to
victims of the flood disaster in the state, chairman of the state’s
Rehabilitation Committee for Flood Victims and Deputy Governor, Prof Amos
Utuama, SAN, said, Wednesday, that from the indications on grounds, the
situation could get worse. Governor Uduaghan, who, last week, gave marching
orders to top government officials from the affected areas to relocate to their
domains and assist the victims, had been thinking nothing in the last few days,
but flood and its effect the people of the state.
You could see the anguish
in him as he paddled a boat to Anwai and some other affected communities on
Wednesday. As somebody who has been ventilating on climate change before now,
he knew as his deputy stated that danger is not over yet.
Just as Utuama was
reporting to him on Wednesday, news came that another community, this time,
Ogodobiri in Bomadi local government area has gone underwater. A government
official from the area said, “My community, Ogodobiri is submerged. Our farms,
which is the source of livelihood for the people have been destroyed. Hunger
looms in the land, residents are crying for help, they need help from the
Federal Government, state government, NEMA, NDDC, NGOs and well-meaning
Nigerians”, he added.
Uduaghan, who is also from
Abigbrodo, a riverine community in Warri North local government simply told
reporters, “This year’s flood is unprecedented. As many of you know, the latest
disaster was triggered by the unusually heavy rainfall that was recorded this
year and the opening of the Lagdo Dam in Cameroun, which was thought to be a
proactive step to contain what, if they had delayed further, would have been a
major catastrophe”.
He indicated that
unapproved structures that stand in natural water channels or flood prone areas
would be removed, adding, residents were warned early enough in the year and if
they had heeded the warning, the damage would have been less.
By Boluwaji Obahopo
Lokoja – Tales of woes and
tears have ravaged the relief camps in Kogi State
There is great hunger and
anger at the relief camps. Food items and relief materials are grossly
inadequate. “We are facing problem with the distribution of food due to the
shortage. There are about 30,000 victims in the camps and we are using two bags
of rice to feed about 2000 persons in each of the camps, an official said.
The Lokoja metropolis has
also continued to have its fair share of the crisis. Presently, no vegetarian
can survive in the state as all the markets are yet to have vegetables on sale
– areas where such vegetables are grown have been submerged or washed away
totally.
However, more people and
organisations have continued to show sympathy to the plight of the flood
victims. Among the organisations that have made their contributions is the
Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, which has expressed concern over the health
of flood victims camped in the affected areas and urged the Federal Government
to be proactive in disaster management.
National President of NMA,
Dr. Osahon Enabulele, who visited the state on Wednesday going round some of
the relief camps presented relief materials, including drugs and other items to
the victims, lamented that the victims were suffering due to the failure of
government to establish a proactive emergency management unit.
Expressing fears of
epidemic in some of the camps, Enabulele explained that NMA decided to visit
the camps to see how to assist the victims, by ensuring that women and children
accessed good medical care. Also, a Non-Governmental Organisation, Partner for
Development and Baby Hannatu Foundation, have donated some relief materials to Kogi State
Representatives of the
organisation, Mr. Tommy Amergo, who presented the relief materials to the state
governor at the Government House, said they were touched by the effects of the
disaster caused by the flood.
A former Military
administrator of the State, Col Bzigu Afakirya, rtd, also donated a consignment
of relief materials to flood victims in the State. The items presented in
Lokoja included 150 bags of rice, mattresses and blankets.
Meanwhile, The House of
Representatives Committee on Environment has assured the Kogi State Government
that the National Assembly would be instrumental in the provision of support
from the Federal Government to provide relief for the victims of flood in the
country.
Sunday Vanguard gathered
from various relief camps in the nine Local Government Areas that are affected
by the flood disaster that there are no unusual health and social challenges in
any of the camps. At Idah, where the camps of victims from Ibaji and Idah Local
Governments are located, the Red Cross Society inaugurated a new chapter,
during which 40 new people were inducted into the organization. The State
Chairman of the Red Cross, Hon Mustapha Allahdey, said the new entrants would
be given a quick induction to enable them join in the rescue operation and humanitarian
services.
Meanwhile, majority of the
people of Ibaji who were trapped in the flood have been moved to Idah. NEMA and
Red Cross said that most of those still staying in the flooded areas of Ibaji
are those who refused to move due to some cultural and spiritual beliefs they
are professing.
Presently, the figures of
affected communities have risen to 400, while NEMA has disclosed that the
country might experience more flooding. The zonal co-ordinator of Abuja Cameroun
and Guinea , the two sources
of Rivers Niger and Benue otherwise known as
black flood, and warned communities yet to relocate along the riverine areas to
move now for their own safety.
Post a Comment
Please keep your comment moderate