From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
The Federal Government has come under fire over its handling of the flood disaster in Bayelsa State and attempts to downplay its impact in the state.
Its action has been compounded by recent comments of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq and her counterpart in Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu which trivialise the disaster in the state. Commissioner For Information, Hon Ayiba Duba in a statement, ‘said the statement made by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, omitting Bayelsa from the list of 10 most impacted states is “disheartening but not surprising.”
According to him, the slow response to the humanitarian crisis arising from the flood despite the President’s directive for the minister to come to the aid of the state is “indeed a confirmation of our belief that the Federal Ministry and its agencies have abandoned their responsibility and are not interested in managing the disaster.”
Duba, while stating that Mrs Farouq was obviously relying “on a bogus data in contradiction of the clear reality that every local government in the state is impacted by the flood in varying degrees” declared that “ the way the minister has treated our state is so unfortunate that our people are beginning to doubt that we are part of Nigeria.”
He queried the criteria she used in determining the most flooded state, noting that no representative of the federal government has visited the state to assess the situation and it has “not shown the minutest of empathy since this monumental devastation hit our state.
“We are asking, is Bayelsa State still part of Nigeria? Are we only important when it is time to exploit the resources in our land?
“If the humanitarian minister is sincere, let her tell Nigerians the relief materials brought to the state and who received them.
“How can a state up North, Jigawa, be worst impacted when indeed Bayelsa State has the unfortunate responsibility of receiving the flood water that ran through more than 15 states? By the reality on ground, over 300 communities were impacted by the flood and almost a million people were displaced from their homes, many of them losing their livelihood, in Bayelsa State. And no other state in the Federation is so impacted.
“If the Minister is desirous of doing a good job, she should leave her cosy office in Abuja and come to Bayelsa State to ascertain the truth, even as the flood began to recede.”
Also speaking in the same vein, former governor of Bayelsa State and Senator representing Bayelsa West in the National Assembly, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson,
the assessments reports attributed to the ministers as insensitive, disrespectful and offensive not only to Bayelsa or the Ijaw nation but the people of all states affected by the flood.