From Jeff Amechi Agbodo, Onitsha
The people of Ogidi community in Anambra State have appealed to the state and federal governments to come to their aid in view of the ravaging flood that has claimed lives and destroyed household property recently.
The flood, which submerged old Awka Road in the Ogidi axis, residential buildings and threatened the palace of the Igwe of Ogidi, Chief Alex Onyido, and the traditional prime minister of the community, Chief Ifeanyi Udokwu, among other houses in the area, had brought sleepless nights and worry to the residents.
Motorists and other road users that ply the old Awka Road suffer hardship on the road whenever it rains due to the volume of the flood that covers the road, making it impassable and causing traffic snarl, while cars and buses always divert to pass through the villages to bypass the area, making journeys longer than normal.
Speaking on the menace of the flood, Onyido warned that it would soon sack the entire area, if urgent attention was not given to the place by the state and federal governments: “The flood has been disturbing for the past 10 years. During the time of the past administration led by Mr. Peter Obi, he embarked upon rehabilitation of old Onitsha-Awka Road and the construction company channelled the floodwater from other communities like Umunnnachi, Umudioka and Aforigwe down here in my community. The idea was that they would pipe it down to the nearby river but they abandoned it and since then this problem continued.
“So, anytime rain falls, the entire area is over-flooded, including the major road. This road connects to Awka from Onitsha; Awka is the state capital and the only way or road you can go to Awka from Asaba, Onitsha and Nkpor is through this road.
“I have been going to Government House to appeal for intervention. In February this year, I met with Governor Willie Obiano for over two hours and appealed to him to assist us before the rainy season started. Though he did explain to me that state government lacked funds because the internally generated revenue was not forthcoming, and, again, that he had an airport project at Umueri. And that due to COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of revenue generation was very low.
“Actually, the governor had sent some engineers that came to survey the area and made proposal of how to pipe the water away. Channelling of that waterways was one of the governor’s campaign promises he made to our people. If you look at my frontage, you will see another pond, that pond cannot be taken care of if that one at the major road is not taken care of. So, I’m badly affected.
“I have been pleading with the governor to assist us because this road is not helping only my community but the entire Nigerians who use the road. This flood menace has gone beyond Ogidi community. I know that the governor has the interest of Ogidi people at heart, being a good man and a titled man in Ogidi; I’m sure he will do something before he leaves office next year because he has listening ears.
“The flood has done havoc to my people, including myself. When rainy season comes, it will overflow and divert to people’s homes and roads, causing havoc. You can see that people no longer live close to the place. In past years, some people drowned, and one of the the bodies was seen floating in the morning in the place. People are drowning here every year.
“Anytime it rains, residents and road users are always trapped; they cannot cross to the other side of the road and houses will be submerged. Again, hoodlums now use of the place to rob and extort money from innocent road users at night.
“Some of the road users when their vehicles are trapped there, they will be at the mercy of the bad boys, who either rob them or extort money from them before they will push the vehicle out of the place. The flooding has created a lot of problems for us.
“The problem is still there and my people are not happy. Once it rains, nobody, including motorists, can pass through the road because it would be over-flooded to the extent that no vehicle can cross or it will get stuck.
“If you look at the front of my house, you will see flood. This is because I created a pond to contain and absorb the water and whenever the pond is filled up my house is under threat. The water is supposed to pass through the gutter but because the gutter that came from Afor Igwe is on top and the level of my house is below, it cannot work and that is why it overflows the gutter. So, I have sacrifice that land at my frontage to water in order to save my house.
“For now, my house and the house of Onowu, Chief Ifeanyi Udokwu, and other residents around here are under threat. Sometimes, if the water overflows the pond in front of my house, it would flow into my compound. People living on the other side of my house don’t sleep. Sometimes, water enters their rooms. So, they keep awake at night when it rains. For those who built fences, the walls fall within two days due to the flood.
“I’m appealing to the federal and state governments to come to our aid because the state government cannot do the work alone. The Federal Government can use the ecological fund because it is a natural disaster. I don’t think with the lean resources of the state government it can afford it without being injured financially.”
A resident of the area Mr. Okechukwu Okoye, stated that the flood “is affecting us seriously. At times, when we are sleeping at night, the flood will wake us up and we begin to remove our property. It destroys our household property and our farms. We are begging and calling on government to re-channel the waterway down to the river. When it rains, most of us living downstairs will take our children to neighbours upstairs to avoid being drowned.”
Some other families being threatened by the flood such as Ikenna Ibezim, Ofelu and Okoye families appealed to government to urgently tackle the flood menace, which has claimed lives and destroyed property in recent times.
A commercial driver, Mr. Samson Onuchukwu, lamented the damage he had suffered on the road, and how his bus was trapped in the middle of the place at night, leading to the damage of his vehicle and robbery.