By Omoniyi Salaudeen
The Bayelsa State governor, Douye Diri, has been charged to urgently come up with a comprehensive master plan on how to provide a lasting solution to the perennial flooding which has become an existential threat to the people of the state.
This demand was contained in a statement issued in Lagos by a Coalition of Ijaw Interest Groups, who expressed dismay over the lackadaisical attitude of the government to its recommendations as well as the earlier reports presented to the previous administrations on some steps that could be taken to address the menace of flood in the state in the aftermath of the 2018 unmitigated disaster.
Bayelsa State is one of the states severely affected by the recent flood which ravaged many communities in the country. While expressing its sympathies to the communities and victims affected by the recent flood disaster, the group berated Governor Diri for the failure of his government to respond to the earlier calls to put in place the necessary mitigation measures.
The release signed by the Secretary of the Ijaw Elders Forum (IEF), Pastor Efiye Bribena, on behalf of the Coalition groups reads in part: “At the onset of the disastrous flood that ravaged Ijaw Land from September till November this year, this coalition of Ijaw Interest Groups wrote to the Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri on 21 October 2022 with recommendations on some steps to take to address the flood disaster.
“Regrettably, we are yet to receive a response on this subject. People have died, properties have been lost and the impacted populations are still traumatized. Yet the government continues to demonstrate insensitivity to the plight of the people they are elected to govern. We, therefore, find it difficult to comprehend whose interest the State Government represents if it cannot find time to attend to recommendations advanced to solve such an existential challenge.”
Consequently, the group charged the government to commence immediate deployment of emergency relief and rehabilitation in accordance with international humanitarian best practices, while also working on sustainable solutions to the recurring but manageable disaster.