Flooding: Residents decry govt’s poor environmental policy
NAN-AE-4
Flooding
By Ajibola Olaniyi
Osogbo, Sept.14, 2016 (NAN) Some residents of Testing Ground and Gbonmi Areas of Osogbo have attributed the flooding of their communities to the state government’s poor environmental policy.
The residents found in deep flood after Tuesday’s downpour, blamed their plight on the state government failure to redirect the flood channels.
They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday that the flood damaged their property and also claimed some lives.
Mrs Toriola Ogun, one of the affected residents in Osogbo, blamed the government for what she said was its poor environmental policy and consequent outright neglect of the communities.
According to her, the vulnerability of the communities to flooding is well known to the Ministry of Environment which has decided to look the other way.
She said the environmental policy of the government was not sustainable and proactive enough to galvanise the state to take mitigating action against flooding.
Mrs Felicia Alarape, a resident of Gbonmi, whose shop was affected, said the government needed to respond to alleviate the plight of the affected persons.
She decried the damage to property in the affected communities, describing it as terrible.
Mr James Alao, a community leader at Testing Ground, however, commended Gov. Rauf Aregbesola, for efforts in handling the issues of flooding in the affected communities before the economic crunch.
Alao said that the initial efforts of the governor had been hampered in recent times by the economic crunch.
“The Ministry of Environment has been dredging canals and waterways in the communities for over five years to prevent flooding until recently when the accruing allocations into the state came down drastically.
“The last time our community experienced this type of flooding was in 2010, before this present government came to power.
“Aregbesola took a proactive measure against the menace through periodic dredging of canals and waterways around here which invariably put a stop to constant flooding in our community.
“I believe the acute shortfall in the allocations to the state has made the government to step down the policy for a while,’’ he said.
Mr Sogo Aina, an environmental activist, blamed the state government over diversion of ecological funds to the state arising in the uncontrollable flooding of communities.
Aina alleged that misappropriation of ecological fund meant to prevent the environment from natural disasters was solely responsible for the resurgence of flooding which regrettably claimed lives.
He, therefore, called on the government to do something fast to avert such deterioration in affected communities. (NAN)
DOO/ECN/OFN
(Edited by Felix Nwadioha)