Linus Oota, Lafia
Some communities; Al-Makura Street, Laying Makabarta, Angwan Yazawa, Makwangijin Lafia and Abubakar Wakili Junction in Lafia, Nasarawa State, are losing their homes due to erosion after some rains and flooding. The residents claimed they have no road to pass to their farms and market as the only bridge linking the area has been cut and washed off due to erosion, which has also caused flooding.
Our correspondent who visited the communities after a recent rain discovered that the areas looked like having been run over by a bulldozer. Gully erosion has cut off or washed away the streets, pulled down some houses and sent residents fleeing their homes.
Investigation showed that economic and human activities are almost non-existent. There are also
dangerous gullies created by fast-flowing floods.
It was heartbreaking to see beautiful houses perched on the edges of deep gullies, forcing owners to relocate. At Al-Makura Street, most residents were seen packing out due to the threats by erosion even as few buildings still sit perilously on the edges of gullies. A resident, Abdulkarine Adamu told Daily Sun that he relocated his family to a more safe location because his house is no longer safe for habitation: “You have seen how erosion ravaged the area to the point that buildings are in danger and even the major street is no longer accessible.
“We have lost our children as a result of the cavity, hollow and degradation caused by erosion, especially when there is heavy downpour. A lot of people here died of depression on how erosion completely washed away their houses. We are appealing to Governor Abdullahi Sule to include these areas in the coming budget. We have suffered for too long.
“Our communities are disappearing due to erosion. We don’t want to live here any longer. We are scared to go back to our homes. Our people have been driven out of their homes and away from their lands to become refugees.
“Most people can hardly drive to their houses because the streets have been cut by erosion. The entire community is being threatened. The erosion has shown it is no respecter of anybody. The governor should come to our aid before erosion wipes us out.”
Another resident, Musa Shehu said: “We heard stories about the award of the contract by the immediate past government of Senator Tanko Al-Makur. But you can see that the places are still in a terrible shape due to erosion.
“My advice to members of these communities is that we must not wait for anybody anymore to save us from the siege, scourges, ravages and destruction by floods and gully erosion that annually ravage the communities. We should all go into mass action by taking our destiny in our hands and seriously combat the ecological hazards of floods and erosion that bedevil our environment.
“Many men, women, old and young, have been killed; springs, streams, wetlands among others have been lost to landslides. There is large-scale psychological depression and helplessness everywhere. Our people have cried, shouted, and pleaded for help to come from almost any source within and outside the state, but all to no avail.”
