…As Ogun River overflows banks with water released from Oyan dam
By Sijibomi Fatayo
Several residents of Yetunde Brown Estate in Ifako-Gbagada area of Lagos State are in pain following the flooding of their community as Ogun River overflowed its banks.
The plight of the people began when excess water was released from Oyan River Dam in Abeokuta North Local Government Area of Ogun State. The water released from the dam flowed into Ogun river, raising the water level and causing the excess water to spread and follow its natural course as it flowed to empty into the Atlantic ocean.
Sunday Sun learnt from the residents that the flooding incident had been a yearly experience whenever water was released from Oyan River dam. But this year, the situation of the people was made worse by the abandoned canal project sited in Sholuyi section of Gbagada.
With the poorly dug canal overflowing with water, flood water spread out into houses in Yetunde Brown Estate and Harmony Estate.
This forced several residents to discard their shoes for knee-high rain boots. Those without rain boots simply waded through the dirty water to reach their homes or head to work, their shoes held aloft.
Chairman of Yetunde Brown Estate, Mr. Bob John Eze, 49, who has been living in the area for nine years, lamented over the seeming reluctance of the state government to fix the problem that had traumatised residents of the community long before he moved into the area.
“We face this problem every year. Former Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola was once invited to this place to see the situation first hand. He came here twice, saw the area and said that there was nothing he could do about it because the state would need the assistance of the Federal Government to fix it. Similarly after he assumed office, Governor, Akinwumi Ambode visited us to see what we have been passing through. We have also written to the Ministry of Environment and the commissioner has visited this area severally and all they could tell us is that Lagos State alone could not do it,” Eze said.
The terrible situation has put the health of children in the area at risk. The people’s hope that Fashola, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, would ease their plight, is hanging on a thin thread.
“We need the federal and state governments to dredge the canal and build concrete slabs on the side and bottom. We thought that with Fashola’s position, he could also assist and work on it with the cooperation of Lagos State but nothing has been done. We all pay our taxes. We are responsible residents of the state; we have done the little we can do yet the federal and state governments have closed their eyes to our plight,” Eze said.
Mrs Abel Ishaya, another resident of Yetunde Brown Estate, complained that despite not living close to the canal, the water flows into her home and makes it impossible for the children to go to school on their own. “It is so painful that the flood affects us this much. I am rushing home now because once the water level gets high, my house will be flooded. The water comes from the ground. I take the children to school with my vehicle and give rides to other children I meet along the way to keep them safe from the water,” Ishaya said..
Reverend Father Aderibigbe, parish priest of Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church, told Sunday Sun that the church had sand-filled its premises several times to raise the ground above street level. But this has not helped the situation as the compound still gets flooded due to seepage from the ground, thereby making it difficult for a lot of the immobile members to attend mass. “This problem has been on since late last month. But this month was worse. That is my office (pointing at it) and it is difficult for me to access it. It has been a yearly occurrence but it has never been this bad. Does the government care about us here? Do they even know if we exist? It also affects us during church service. Our attendance has reduced greatly due to this,” the priest said.
The priest further expressed deep concern that a 23-feet long python was chased out and killed while the canal was being dredged recently. He said that it was dangerous for such reptiles to be in a place where people pass everyday, either going to work or coming home. Such a giant snake could easily attack and swallow an unwary human being using the canal as short cut to reach their destination quickly rather than taking the longer routes.
For Mr Hafiz Oduloye, who resides in Sholuyi but gets to Ifako by canoe, the problem being experienced by residents of Yetunde Brown Estate was little compared to what his area has been contending with in recent times. He said he has not been dressing well to work since the flooding started. “For the past two weeks now, this is the way I go to work. That is by taking off my shoes and socks, rolling up my trousers and leaving home. I hold shoes in my hands till I get to a tarred road with no water. It is on the bus I wear my shoes. When I am coming back home, it is the same thing I face. I earnestly want this government to look into this issue and build a bridge over this canal. Water has been surging into our compounds, our homes, everywhere,” he lamented.
On her part, the primary concern of Miss Adeyeye Yejide, another resident, who said that the health of the children whose parents have no vehicles to take them to school and are therefore compelled to wade through the water to get to school every week day would be jeopardised by the dirty flood water. “This is so uncomfortable. It is an eyesore in our environment. We know that children are passing through this street everyday because they have to go to their schools. We also know that this water is contaminated. It contains harmful microbial organisms that will affect their health. We don’t want that kind of thing to happen to our children in this neighborhood. We want the government to do something about this mess quickly to avoid anything which would cause them to fall sick,” Yejide said.
With the recent announcement that water would continue to be released from Oyan dam until the end of November 2016, the suffering of the people is not likely to abate soon.