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2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D’Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister’s Claim On Most Impacted States

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

 

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D’Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister’s Claim On Most Impacted States

The Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo has faulted the claim of Minister Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Sadiya Farouq that Bayelsa State is not among the 10 most impacted states by the 2022 flood in Nigeria.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

Senator Ewhrudjakpo was speaking during a Courtesy visit by the Presidential Candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo on his office, Government House Yenagoa to empathise with flood victims in Bayelsa State.

The Bayelsa Deputy Governor stressed that there is no way Bayelsa will not be more affected by flooding than any other state in Nigeria, as the state has all the tributaries in Nigeria through which water finds it way into the Atlantic ocean.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

The Deputy Governor maintained that the damage done to Bayelsa State was colossal and, will cost huge recourses to rehabilitate and recover the human resources, infrastructure and social amenities greatly impacted by the unprecedented natural disaster. He stressed that is it a display of insensitivity for anyone to claim that one state in the North or elsewhere is more impacted than Bayelsa.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

Ewhrudjakpo charged President Buhari Nigeria or any other top official of the Federal Government, that cares, particularly the minister of Humanitarian affairs who has since the beginning of the ravaging flood remained in her Abuja comfort zone, relying on armchair statistics to make unreconcilable statements to emulate the UN Humanitarian Coordinator, Mathias Schmale who likened the flood in Bayelsa to Pakistan’s flooding that deserves urgent attention upon visiting flooded communities in the state.

“It’s very ridiculous, and a shallow reason for anyone to claim that the roof receives more water than the ground. The roof does not receive more water than the ground, because first of all, the roof receives it water directly and then send to the ground.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

“All the tributaries in Nigeria end up in Bayelsa state. River Niger and River Benue meets at the conference at Lokoja. Whatever volume of what the River Niger and River Benue receive end up in Bayelsa before it finds it way to the Atlantic Ocean. The volume of water receive in places like Jigawa and Nasarawa States are not as voluminous as that received in Bayelsa State.

“Bayelsa State is naturally 1.5 metres below sea level. So it’s an armchair research that made the Minister for Humanitarian affairs to remained in Abuja to claim that Bayelsa is not one of the most impacted by the 2022 flood in Nigeria. We need to question the statistics she used to ascertain that.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

“I believe those who have visited Bayelsa State as clearly demonstrated by the UN Humanitarian Coordinator have shown that it’s better for those that care to visit the states to know which is more impacted.

“The magnitude of damage caused by the flood is not only colossal but unimaginable. It will take us real resources to recover and rehabilitate the human resources, infrastructure and social amenities greatly damaged. We are really devastated as a state.

“We were quick to respond to what happened in Pakistan. And I believe if Bayelsa were to be in other part of the Country, other than Ijaw land, the Federal Government and every other person would have been crying more than they are doing now.

“We believe such should also be done for the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). The fact that the NDDC had been left comatose for so long is an insensitivity on the part of the Federal Government.

“The NDDC is an interventionist agency that had been so unduly politicized and had become the fishing port for ministers of the federal Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs” Senator Ewhrudjakpo stated.

Similarly, the Obenibe of Epie Kingdom, King Malla Sasime has described as laughable the statement credited to the Humanitarian Minister where she outrightly ststed Bayelsa is not among the most impacted state by the flood in Nigeria.

The monarch who questioned the Minister’s elementary geography knowledge argued that Bayelsa State is the basin that receives all the water in Nigeria before emptying into the Atlantic ocean.

The monarch speaking when Prince Adewole Adebayo, SDP Presidential Candidate who was in Bayelsa to empathise with flood victims paid a courtesy visit on his Palace at Igbogene, noted with shock that till date the president of Nigeria, President Buhari has not visited Bayelsa State to commiserate with those affected by the 2022 unprecedented flood.

“The Federal Government has not come to tell the people whose communities are under water sorry. Rather all we have been hearing is that, one Minister, the Minister of Humanitarian affairs saying that Bayelsa is not among the 10 most affected States by the flood, as if we are in competition. So we have to be among the 10 most impacted states before we can be attended to?

“In any case I don’t know if she have geography background. If you look at the geography of Nigeria, the way the country is configured, Bayelsa is like the basin that collect all the water from River Niger and Benue that empty into the Atlantic Ocean. So there is no way flood will occur and Bayelsa will not be more impacted.

“The Federal Government did not even take the trouble of coming down to Bayelsa to see things for himself. The Minister sits down in Abuja to declare which State is more affected.

2022 Flooding: Bayelsa D'Gov Ewhrudjakpo, King Sasime Fault Humanitarian Minister's Claim On Most Impacted States

“In a civilised country, when flood of this magnitude occurs the President goes down to the area. Even President Joe Biden that is older than President Buhari, went to Florida and places impacted by disaster to empathise with the people. But here our President is missing in action”, King Sasime noted.

Clement Ovokeroye Paul,
Senior Special Assistant (New Media), Deputy Governor’s Office, Bayelsa State. 9/11/2022.

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