From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Okon Umana Okon, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for approving the provision of palliatives for flood victims of the nine Niger Delta states including Abia.
Okon made the commendation in Umuahia on Tuesday while presenting palliatives to victims of six local governments in the state affected by flooding in 2022.
Represented by Oyiniyi Azeez, a director in the Ministry, Okon said although the relief materials were coming late, but that it was better late than never.
The Minister said before his Ministry’s intervention, other bodies had identified with the flood victims, stressing that whatever the Ministry and others were giving, would go a long way in assisting the victims begin life all over.
He said the event was the first phase of items that would be handed over to the victims for their rehabilitation, adding that the second phase would follow soon.
“The communities and Local Government Areas highly impacted by the effect of the flood were identified by NEMA through the Needs Assessment they conducted after the flood.
“It is these identified areas that have been earmarked to be given these relief items in order to rehabilitate the people”, the Minister assured.
Minister of State, Ministry of Science and Technology, Henry Ikoh, who was represented by Dimgba Eruba, Abia NDDC Commissioner, while describing last year’s flooding as the worst in recent times, however, commended Buhari for coming to the aides of the affected people.
He said inasmuch as no amount of palliative can effectively replace the loss people encountered as a result of the flood, he nevertheless expressed optimism that the relief items would help alleviate their sufferings.
He said security agencies had been directed to monitor the distribution of the relief materials to ensure they get to those they were meant for.
NEMA coordinator for the Owerri office, comprising Abia and Imo states, Nnaji Ifeanyi commended the Federal Government for the relief materials.
He promised they would be judiciously distributed to those they were meant for.
Abia SEMA coordinator, Dr. Sammy Jackson said although his agency had been receiving relief materials in the past, these were of special quality.
He made a case for Ukwa West Local Government which he regretted was not captured among the beneficiary LGAs despite the fact it was devastated by last year’s flooding and being the only oil-producing LGA in the state.
Some of the relief items included grinding machines foams, bags of gari, rice, fertilizer and others.