By Sunday Ani
Hope of living was recently restored to the people of Obiadibi and Ogbelle communities in Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, after the October 10 flood that submerged the communities, forcing the people to take refuge at internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in the state.
Life became a living hell for the people following the flood disaster that not only rendered them homeless but also destroyed their farms and property worth millions of naira.
However, succour came to them when a company, IdentityPass Nigeria Limited, in partnership with a non-governmental organisation, Girls Inspired Development Network (GIDN), decided to provide relief materials to some of the affected families in the two communities.
According to the GIDN programme manager, Bukola Adeboye, the relief materials that were provided for 100 families, 50 each from the two communities, included foodstuff, hygiene materials, toiletries and medicines, as well as medical checkup.
Obiadibi, an agrarian community located 14.9km away from Ahaoda main town, and Ogbelle, a neighbouring sister community that is 5.6 kilometres away from Odiabidi, were submerged after the torrential rainfall on October 10, destroying farmlands and property, and forcing the people to flee and seek refuge in IDP camps within the state.
“The flood sacked the residents, rendered the entire communities desolate, destroyed their farms and left the only road that leads to both communities in ruins. With their farms destroyed, it was only a matter of time before hunger set it. Extreme lack and poverty became their lot and they cried out for assistance from anywhere – government, individual, organisations and anybody that could come to their rescue,” Adeboye noted.
In response to the people’s cry for help and as part of its service to humanity, IdentityPass Nigeria Limited initiated the move to alleviate their suffering. Girls Inspired Development Network, also as a humanitarian organisation, was handy to partner IdentityPass so as to provide succour to the people.
According to Adeboye, the people had been living in the IDP camps since the ugly incident, until November 12 and 13 when they returned to their ancestral homes after the water had receded completely.
“Food items and spices that were distributed to them included bags of rice, cartons of tomato paste, gallons of groundnut oil, bags of salt, tubers of yam and loaves of bread, toiletries and hygiene materials such as bathing soap, washing soap, toothpaste, tissue paper, and sanitary pads. Medicals included mosquito nets, malaria drugs, high blood pressure drugs, vitamin C and paracetamol, among others,” Adeboye said.
She also stated that nursing mothers and aged women were particularly provided with mosquito nets to prevent malaria, since they were more vulnerable than their male counterparts.
On the criteria for distribution, she said: “We identified and mapped communities with vulnerable people affected by the flood, met with the community mobilizers about the proposed programme and security and collected data of the target beneficiaries before the distribution of the items at the communities’ town halls.”
She called for continuous partnership and collaboration to extend the impact and accelerate change, even as she made a case for regular medical checks because of the people’s lifestyles, which she noted predisposes them to high blood pressure.
She equally advocated an increased and sustained awareness of climate change and flooding using their local language, since the communities were close to a river. “There is also a serious need for emergency planning and disaster management for the future,” she added.
Expressing joy over the development, one of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Ekpete Roseline thanked the organisations that sponsored the programme and prayed that God would continue to sustain them. She said: “The flood damaged our farms and our household property worth hundreds of thousands of Naira. I am happy for these gifts and I thank the NGO that made this possible. As soon as I got home, I quickly cooked the yam for my family and everybody was happy after eating. May God bless them and give them the resources to extend this same assistance to others that were affected by this same flood.”
Another beneficiary, Onyekwa Hannah also thanked the organisation for their magnanimity even as she acknowledged that the materials would go a long way to assist her and her family. She revealed that this year’s flood was very devastating, noting that she had never seen such a flood in her lifetime.
“I am happy and lucky to be one of the beneficiaries. I thank the organisations that put the programme together and pray that God would continue to protect and provide for them so that they can do more for other affected persons,” she added.