Another Flood Disaster Looms In Anambra as lawmaker raises alarm on mitigation

                                            


In 2012  Anambra communities in Ayamelum , Anambra-east , Anambra-west ,Ogbaru , Awka-North and some other places suffered the misfortune of being submerged by flood occasioned by persistent torrential rainfall during the period in question . Inhabitants of the flood-affected areas not only cried but gnashed their teeth throughout the disaster period and are still bemoaning their fate three years on after the deadly rainfall .

At Otu-ocha food stuff market by the bank of Omambala  river , stalls and spaces destroyed by the 2012 deluge have not been restored or repaired due to paucity of funds as explained by few traders in the market . The traders had prayed fervently for government to intervene in their situation but government seemed to have distanced itself from these rural dwellers that are neighbours to the incumbent Governor Chief Willie Obiano  . To this end the sad memories of the 2012 flood catastrophe in Anambra State could best be imagined than having a repeat of such sorrowful episode . But rather than take adequate preventive measures to mitigate the emergence of flood again in Anambra State , the state government seems to dilly dally in its responsibility to the citizenry . Another flood disaster looms as residents in the state beckons on the state government to take decisive measures to tackle the menace of flooding in the state .

On 27th July 2015 precisely an Anambra community where Professors reside was visited by
a torrential rain that lasted for over twelve hours and wreaked havoc in the area known as  Esther Obiakor estate in Awka .
The professors reside there because of its nearness to Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
Mrs Jacinta Walters a resident of the estate said she had been living in the area for the past three years and that her apartment had been flooded five times during which  her valuables were
destroyed.She said“My television, mattresses, certificates and children’s academic files are all destroyed now, my house was filled with water up to window level, and you can see my children scooping water out of the house.
Chief Joseph Nwakpadolu, a landlord in the area said the flooding problem was caused by the enormity of floods channeled to the area from Agu-Awka, Aroma and Nkwo-Amenyi areas  within Awka.
Nwakpadolu said the drainage channel to control these floods was inadequate and appealed to the Anambra state government to remedy the situation.
He  said “The situation here is always bad during rainy season, our farmland has been submerged,buildings are endangered and lives are not safe.“
“The flooding from the channel rushes into the estate because the culvert there cannot carry the water through, the transformer serving us is working but you can see it is under the water.
“It is our appeal that the government to de-silt the area because the level is rising by the day, we cannot do these ourselves and now that the rains are here, we pray there will not be outbreak of epidemic,” , he appealed.
The worst hit areas are Nnobi road of the Estate, where over 12 professors live.  Among them are : Gabriel Ukachukwu (formerAnambra State Director of the National Orientation Agency ,NOA), Ben Osisioma (a reknown Professor of Management Science and an orator), Nonso Nnabuife(Professor of Engineering) Ben Chuks Okeke (Vice Chancellor of Federal University GUSAU).

In furtherance,  just recently no fewer than 30 professors and 20 doctors (PhD holders), mostly of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka had to petition the state government over  poor state of government infrastructure and ecological degradation as well as abandoned government project in the estate.

Briefing newsmen, Professor Gabriel Unachukwu, flanked by an array of professors and other residents of the community, regretted what they called government’s deliberate neglect of the place ,saying several petitions and entreaties to the state government had continued to be greeted with insensitivity and disdain.

They maintained that since the estate was built in 1991, residents had been providing for themselves all the essential facilities such as electricity, water in the estate.

The professors wondered why government should neglect an area made up of a cluster of heavy tax payers as Professors and top public servants and business class.

They said “we are only happy here during the dry season. Each rainy season we lose human and material resources. Today we struggle to go to church because the road linking this estate and Aquinas Church where most of us worship had been cut off by flood.

'The only school in this estate is threatened by erosion. Most other buildings are on danger list..
The residents of the area have now resorted to tasking themselves and motorists plying the estate as means to temporarily survive the situation.
For  Professor Emeka Ezeonu "this measure is just like postponing the evil day; how far can this go? .For Professor Akusoba,"we are looking up to God to make a difference through the new government of Chief Willy Obiano."
Meanwhile the state governor , Willie Obiano  on Monday defied the torrential rain across the state to inspect the havoc wreaked by flooding in some estates in Awka and Onitsha.

The governor blamed road contractors for not observing basic rules and guidelines in construction.
He said," we have cautioned our people to observe basic rules and guidelines when embarking on the construction of their buildings. We can see that the rain are here and is causing havoc here and there. People should desist from dumping refuse and blocking drains because it contributes to what we are witnessing. Anyone caught in the act will contend with relevant laws and where found guilty will be punished."

On the other hand the lawmaker representing Njikoka 1 state constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly Hon.Dr. Timothy Ifedioramma while speaking with a cluster of journalists at the state house of assembly complex Awka recently after plenary said vehemently that there is an urgent need for Governor Willie Obiano to draw the attention of the State Emergency Management Agency to the issue of flooding in the state . Hon. Ifedioramma recalled that in 2012 there was a dangerous and devastating consequences of flooding in the state . He however maintained that there is need for the state government to be more proactive so as to nip the impending flood disaster in the state in the bud before it sets in . He therefore called on Governor Willie Obiano to as a matter of urgent attention to direct SEMA to take precautionary cum preventive measures and sensitise people in the flood-prone areas to be aware of precautionary measures they themselves need to take to prevent themselves from the deluge and avoid being caught unawares .

The lawmaker also suggested that the felling of trees should be discouraged while encouraging the planting of trees to prevent some of the natural disasters . According to him, the indiscriminate burning of bushes and some others cause ecological problems as well as playdown on natural vegetation adding that any inhumane act on the environment may have dire consequences .  Although he pointed out that there are no flood issues in Njikoka state constituency but the likes of Ayamelum , Anambra-east and west , are some of the people prone to flooding stressing that the flood  disaster of 2012 should not repeat itself . As part of the ecological challenges in his constituency , Hon. Ifedioramma also drew the attention of Governor Willie Obiano to the abandoned Nkwo-enugwu-ukwu by-pass road that is currently causing havoc in the area . He said the road in question has been abandoned eversince it was flagged-off by the state governor recently as a result of the fact that the contractor handling the said road has not gone to site to start work on the road .. Apart from the Nkwo-enugwu-ukwu road , the lawmaker mentioned Ring road that connects Nri town in Anaocha LGA . He said that the road is currently in a very deplorable condition and information reveals that the road has been awarded for construction but the contractor handling the road project has not comnenced work due to the fact that it has not been funded .

Inspite of the foregoing , Hon.Ifedioramma was of the opinion that the government of Chief Willie Obiano should be combatant ready as well as fortify the state emergency management agency with the necessary technology to tackle natural disasters as another flood insurgence looms in the state .